How hit-and-run cases and their death toll are on the rise

The chilling BMW hit-and-run case has once again turned the spotlight on the increasing callousness of drivers. Data shows a rise in hit-and-run cases in India, with 67,387 incidents in 2022 alone, resulting in the deaths of 30,486 people, the highest in the last ten years.

Hit-and-run cases are defined as incidents where the perpetrator flees the scene without reporting the incident to authorities or helping the victims. These cases have been on the rise over the past decade.

Data from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways shows that in 2013, around 49,576 hit-and-run cases were registered, which gradually increased to 69,822 cases in 2018. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, there was a decrease, with 52,448 cases in 2020. However, the numbers have started increasing again, reaching 67,387 cases in 2022.

Venkatesh Balasubramanian, Professor in the Department of Engineering Design at IIT Madras, said, “A person being in an accident and not helping a fellow victim in a hit-and-run accident is indicative of the lack of empathy in the society.”

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“Most frequent reasons cited for fleeing from the scene of accident is the fear of being manhandled or monetarily fleeced or getting entangled in court proceedings. There is a need to go beyond the Good Samaritan law to address this primal response of fear.”

“Having Rules isn’t a sufficient condition, it is important to bring about a social change to make the big difference. Implementation of rules and how people adhere to them need to be closely monitored,” added Balasubramanian.

The IIT Delhi’s ‘Road Safety in India Status Report 2023’ states that the number of fatalities due to road accidents is underreported, although the extent is not well known. The report cites that the number of road accident deaths in 2019 was 40 per cent higher than government data indicates.

Hit-and-run cases have become widely prevalent despite underreporting, though some have been captured by media reports. In May this year, a juvenile son of a real estate businessman hit a girl from behind with a Porsche in Pune and fled the scene.

Similarly, in June, Rajya Sabha MP BM Rao’s daughter ran over a man on a Chennai pavement with a BMW. In both cases, the accused received immediate bail.

Previously, those accused in hit-and-run cases were tried under the erstwhile Indian Penal Code Section 304A, which carried a maximum punishment of two years. However, under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita Section 106(2), the maximum imprisonment has been raised to 10 years, although the act does not mention fines.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report, out of 47,806 registered cases in 2022, only 16 per cent resulted in convictions, highlighting the slow pace of justice.

Data from the NCRB shows that 58.9 per cent of hit-and-run cases were due to overspeeding, followed by careless driving or overtaking (26.4 per cent), weather conditions (8.8 per cent), and driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol (1.7 per cent).

Section 161 of the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019, stipulates compensation for hit-and-run accident victims. It provides Rs 2 lakh for death and ₹50,000 for grievous injuries.

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Despite the high number of reported cases, government-sponsored claims paid to victims of hit-and-run incidents are declining. In 2021-22, 773 claims were paid, totaling ₹1.84 crore. In 2022-23, only 78 claims were paid, amounting to ₹1.47 crore.