Having learnt their lessons in the wake of the rape of a woman executive by an Uber cabbie, Delhi Police and Delhi Transport department are working together to frame a foolproof system that will ensure that no person with criminal antecedents gets a licence, the Delhi Police chief said on Friday. Shiv Kumar Yadav, the alleged rapist had submitted a forged character certificate from the police to the Regional Transport Office (RTO) to get an All India Permit for his car. “As far as this verification certificate is concerned, that is definitely a fake certificate,” Delhi Police Commissioner BS Bassi said.
The police chief said that the availability of such certificates is a matter of concern and that is why they are ensuring a very professional investigation of this particular case to prevent such occurrences in the future. “We are in regular touch with the Transport Commissioner. We have extremely good liaison with them and we are going to work out a new system that no person with criminal antecedents gets any licence,” said Bassi.
Bassi also sought to clarify that the role of the police is only limited to verification of an individual and the licence is issued by the Transport Department. “As far as licensing is concerned, licences are issued by the Transport Commissioner. The rules in this regard are made under the Motor Vehicle Act and various rules and regulations are formed by the Transport Commissioner. “As far as we are concerned, wherever verification is required, we come into the picture. There are certain systems that we follow to ensure that no person with criminal background gets a character verification certificate,” he said.
Delhi Police had registered a separate FIR against Yadav in this connection at Burari police station and an agent of a finance company, who allegedly helped him procure the fake character certificate, was detained. The 32-year-old cab driver, during interrogation, had told the police that he got the fake character certificate, issued in the name of an Additional DCP of Delhi Police, from a finance company agent. The investigation so far has revealed that Yadav had bought the car in which the crime took place after taking a loan from the finance company.