Mumbai Police have seized a motorcycle and registered a complaint against its owner after his 15-year-old son was allegedly caught speeding without a driving licence on Saki Vihar Road in Sakinaka on Wednesday. The action brings parental responsibility under scrutiny in a city where traffic enforcement increasingly involves preventing unlicensed minors from using motor vehicles.
Traffic police constables Sanjay Sarjerao Magar and Gopal Patil were on duty on the western lane of Saki Vihar Road when they stopped the teenager at about 11.55 am, according to the police complaint reported by the Times of India. Police alleged that the boy, identified as Yusuf Sarfaraz Kadri, was riding rashly and negligently, endangering himself and other road users.
The teenager’s age was established through a Maharashtra government-issued birth certificate produced by his father. The document recorded his date of birth as October 29, 2011, confirming that he was a minor at the time of the incident.
Sub-inspector Sandeep Chavan contacted the boy’s father, Sarfaraz Farukh Kadri, and asked him to bring the child’s birth certificate, Aadhaar card and the vehicle’s registration certificate to the Sakinaka Traffic Police Station. Kadri told the police that he owned the motorcycle and that his son did not have a driving licence.
Police alleged that Kadri knowingly permitted his minor son to use the vehicle. “The motorcycle was seized under Section 207 of Motor Vehicles Act. Kadri was taken to Sakinaka Police Station for further legal action, and constable Magar lodged a formal complaint against him,” the police said.
Under the provisions cited by the police, the father faces a possible sentence of up to three years in prison and a fine of Rs 25,000 if found guilty. The motorcycle was seized under Section 207 of the Motor Vehicles Act, which allows authorities to detain a vehicle involved in specified offences.
The case involving the teenager will be handled by the Juvenile Justice Board. Police said he would face the relevant penalties under the Motor Vehicles Act and would be barred from obtaining a learner’s licence until he turns 25. The reported action places both the rider’s age and the vehicle owner’s role at the centre of the proceedings.
The Sakinaka case also highlights the enforcement challenge created when privately owned motorcycles are made available to minors without licences. While the immediate police action involved one vehicle and one family, the legal process will determine the responsibility of the owner and the measures applicable to the juvenile rider. Further proceedings will be taken by the police and the Juvenile Justice Board.
