Parking space woes? Karnataka High Court orders release of 1.5 lakh vehicles seized for violation of COVID lockdown guidelines

The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday allowed jurisdictional police officers to release over 1.50 lakh vehicles seized for violation of COVID-19 restrictions .The Court noted that 1,37,503 two-wheelers, 7,432 four-wheelers and 7,123 other vehicles were seized in the entire State amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, it will be difficult for the police to find a proper place for parking so many vehicles, the Court observed.A Division Bench of Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Suraj Govindaraj, therefore, ordered that such vehicles can be released to their owners after verification of documents along with an undertaking and deposit of fines.The order was passed on an application filed by the State government seeking release of such vehicles. .The Court further observed that jurisdictional magistrates would be overburdened if the owners of the vehicles apply separately for return of vehicles. .Therefore, the Court ordered,"In the event, the persons claiming to be the owners of the vehicles which have been seized for violation of various orders issued concerning COVID-19 make an application to the jurisdictional Police Officers to grant custody of the seized vehicles, after verification of the ownership of the applicants, it will be open for the jurisdictional Police Officers to give custody of the seized vehicles to the owners by exercising the powers under sub-section (3) of Section 102 of Cr.P.C.".In this regard, the Court noted that a similar order had been passed on April 30, 2020. The Court said that the said order is reiterated with the modification that in case of goods vehicles (except for three and four wheeler goods vehciles), the deposit amount will be of Rs. 2,000. "The jurisdictional Police Officers can exercise such power provided the owner of goods vehicle (other than three and four wheeler goods vehicle) is willing to deposit a sum of Rs.2,000 with the police, the owner of four wheeler is willing to deposit a sum of Rs.1,000 with the police and the owner of three wheeler or two wheeler is willing to deposit a sum of Rs.500 with the police," the Court directed. ."The custody of the vehicle can be handed over to the owners provided the owners execute a bond undertaking in terms of sub-section (3) of Section 102 of Cr.P.C with an additional undertaking not to commit the same breaches again," the Division Bench added. .Karnataka HC orders release of vehicles seized during COVID-19 lockdown, subject to payment of fine and undertaking not to commit breach.It was also pointed out to the Court that the April 2020 order was confined only to the limits of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), while present application moved by the State government was for relief with respect to the entire State.In this light, the Court clarified that the order shall be applicable to the entire State. .[Read Order]