In a striking oral observation during the hearing of a reckless driving case, the Karnataka High Court suggested an unusual form of community service for a Bengaluru man accused of dangerous driving— cleaning roads while travelling in his Lamborghini.
The remark was made by a single-judge bench of Justice M Nagaprasanna while hearing a petition filed by BR Chiranth, a resident of CV Raman Nagar. Chiranth had approached the court seeking to quash a case registered against him for alleged reckless driving on Mysuru Road.
During the proceedings, the court noted that the petitioner had expressed remorse and shown willingness to undertake community service.
Responding to this, Justice Nagaprasanna orally suggested, “There are various kinds of community service. You go in a Lamborghini, sweep the garbage on the street, and come back in the same Lamborghini. You have violated traffic, so you will teach traffic.”
The bench clarified that the exact nature of the community service would be specified in a detailed written order, while disposing of the petition.
Counsel for the petitioner argued that Chiranth had been wrongly portrayed and had not committed any grave offence. The counsel added that the petitioner was already engaged in spreading awareness about traffic rules among school students and was willing to continue such efforts.
Highlighting precedent, the defence submitted that courts have previously adopted corrective approaches, citing a case where a doctor was directed to serve in a government school every Sunday for six months.
However, the state opposed the suggestion of allowing the accused to teach traffic rules. The government counsel argued that it would be inappropriate for someone accused of reckless driving in a luxury car to take on such a role, suggesting instead that activities like tree plantation would be more suitable.
The case originated from a complaint filed by police Sub-Inspector R Ramaswamy, who came across a video on the social media platform X. The video allegedly showed a Lamborghini being driven at high speed in a reckless manner on Mysuru Road. The complaint also stated that the vehicle had a modified silencer that could pose a threat to public safety.
Based on the complaint, an FIR was registered against Chiranth at the Kengeri Traffic Police Station on January 20 under Sections 120 and 177 of the Motor Vehicles Act. After hearing both sides, the High Court disposed of the petition, stating that a detailed order outlining the scope and nature of the community service will follow.
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