‘No pay, no info on my vehicle’: Drivers allege forced poll duty in Bihar

Election rules allow the use of registered vehicles for official duties, but some claim their vehicles have been used without either consent or due procedure in poll-bound Bihar.

Patna’s historic Gandhi Maidan has been closed to the public and turned into a temporary parking ground for vehicles earmarked for election work. In interviews with Newslaundry, several drivers said they were brought to Gandhi Maidan against their will and that their vehicles were effectively “seized” for election duty.

Sanjeet Kumar, a driver from Chhapra, said the police stopped him while he was dropping someone off at the station. “They told me they just needed the vehicle to drop a few staff,” he alleged. “Now my vehicle has been sent directly to election duty. I don’t know where the vehicle is, I haven’t been paid, and I have no place to stay.”

Other drivers shared similar accounts. 

Watch.

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