Mumbai Cabbie Cracks Fake Plate Case After 25 E-Challans, Tracks Down Culprit

Shortly after parking his vehicle in Ghatkopar's Asalpha village on Monday, Dharmendra Porwal, a 31-year-old aggregator cab driver, was stunned to receive an e-challan of Rs 1,500 for purportedly parking in a no-parking zone in Mankhurd. This marked his 25th e-challan in the last two years, totaling Rs 16,000, for infractions he claims he did not commit. Frustrated by the lack of response to his repeated complaints to the traffic police, Porwal resolved to take matters into his own hands.

Utilizing the Mumbai Traffic Police app's Google Maps feature, Porwal tracked down his car's duplicated number plate to Mankhurd. There, he discovered traffic police confiscating a sedan bearing his vehicle's registration. Porwal promptly alerted authorities at the Mankhurd traffic chowky, presenting his cab's legitimate documents and exposing the fraudulent activity.

According to a report of TOI, Deonar police were alerted and they arrested the seized vehicle's driver, Sultan Jaman (41). We searched the car and found three more fake number plates, said an officer. We questioned Jaman who said that as he had pending fines of a total Rs 40,000 for traffic violations, he decided to use fake number plates on his vehicle and ferry passengers. Police booked Jaman under relevant IPC sections of cheating, forgery and breach of trust.

Porwal, residing in Asalpha, expressed relief at the resolution, stating, For the past two years, I had been receiving e-challans for traffic violations I had not committed. I am happy that the problem has been resolved and the accused apprehended.