In an unusual incident from Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, police issued a traffic challan (fine) of Rs 20.74 lakh to a scooter rider named Anmol Singh. When he failed to pay the fine, his scooter was seized. Soon after, the receipt went viral on social media, prompting the Superintendent of Police (SP) to acknowledge the error and reduce the penalty to Rs 4,000.
According to reports, the incident occurred in the Gandhi Colony area under the New Mandi Kotwali police station. During a routine vehicle check, police stopped a scooter (registration number UP12 CA 9880) and fined the rider for not carrying essential documents, a driving license, or wearing a helmet.
As the viral receipt caused an uproar online, confusion spread within the department. Officials later clarified that the fine was issued under Section 207 of the Motor Vehicles Act (MV Act), but due to an oversight by the sub-inspector, the system mistakenly generated an inflated penalty amount.
SP Traffic Atul Chaube admitted that the excessive fine was a result of a technical glitch and confirmed that the actual challan amount had been corrected to Rs 4,000.
CO New Mandi Raju Kumar also stated that while the scooter rider was rightly penalized for violating traffic rules, the amount printed on the receipt was entered incorrectly and was promptly rectified as per the provisions of the MV Act.
Local residents have criticized the police for such a major error, expressing concern over how a “technical glitch” could result in a fine running into lakhs of rupees.
