The Ministry of Home Affairs has appealed truckers to call off their strike and return to their respective jobs, assuring that it is ready to hear the concerns of the protestors regarding the hit-and-run provision under the recently passed Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS).

Truckers had called for a nationwide strike from 1 January to 30 January 2024 in protest of the Section 106 (2) of BNS under which a driver involved in a hit-and-run case would be slapped with 10 years imprisonment and Rs 7 lakh fine. The strike has caused panic buying of fuel, LPG and other essentials in several states.

The government communicated that the new laws and provisions under BNS, which is set to replace the Indian Penal Law, have not yet come into force. “We would also like to point out that the decision to invoke Section 106 (2) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita will be taken only after consultation with the All India Motor Transport Congress,” it added.

After the meeting between MHA and representatives of All India Motor Transport Congress on Tuesday, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla and Chairman of AIMTC, Kultaran Singh Atwal both made appeals to the truck drivers to get back to work.

According to The Hindu, Atwal has however said that although the All India Motor Transport Congress had called off the strike after the meeting, transport bodies in other States would continue with the strike. “It is a drivers’ movement, transporters have little to do with it. Since we are headquartered in Delhi, the Union government called us for a meeting. Let’s see how many drivers turn up for work on Wednesday,” Atwal said.