Singh: Maruti ride

New Delhi, Jan. 18: The nation can sit back and relax: the Prime Minister’s right to occupy the driver’s seat had expired but he has regained it.

Manmohan Singh today drove his Maruti 800 to the transport office to renew his driving licence that had expired in early December, taking a break from the practice of being driven around over the past four years.

Wife Gursharan Kaur by his side and the security cavalcade keeping a close watch, the Prime Minister eased the white Maruti out of 7 Race Course Road in the morning and reached the Regional Transport Office at Indraprastha Bus Depot, around 5km away.

“Both the Prime Minister and Mrs Kaur got their licences renewed,” principal information officer Deepak Sandhu confirmed. The Prime Minister deposited Rs 240 — the fee plus the amount required for lamination of the licence — and a medical certificate with the RTO in line with the rules of the Delhi transport department.

A bigger test for another licence renewal — for the same number of years (five) — lies ahead in the summer when the general election is scheduled and L.K. Advani will be hoping the ride then will not be as smooth for Singh as it was today.

Advani, Singh’s principal competitor for the top job, does not own a car, according to the assets declared before the 2004 Lok Sabha polls, and is usually driven in cars provided to the leader of the Opposition.

Like Advani, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi doesn’t own a car and is driven, though her late husband, Rajiv Gandhi, occasionally used to take the wheel.

Son Rahul Gandhi has been photographed driving with his sister Priyanka and, according to Congress sources, occasionally took the wheel during a roadshow last year.

CPM leaders Prakash and Brinda Karat are always driven, though — mostly in a party Ambassador. Occasionally, Prakash rides a Tata Sumo while Brinda takes a Maruti WagonR.

Their CPI comrades A.B. Bardhan and D. Raja don’t own cars either, but a party-owned Honda City, far swankier than the CPM’s Ambassador, ferries them.

Security concerns are the main reason why VIPs hardly ever drive themselves, the personal secretary of a cabinet minister said. “It isn’t about driving skills at all. The person driving a VIP car is trained not just in driving, but in a series of drills on how to manage a situation and how to ride in a cavalcade. That’s why you will hardly see top politicians driving,” the secretary said.

Did the Prime Minister commit an offence by driving without possessing the renewed licence?

Officials clarified that he had applied for the renewal two weeks ago and the new licence was approved then. A grace period of 30 days is allowed when the licence expires.

“Besides, the sole purpose of the ride today was to collect the driving licence. So, it cannot be said that any law was broken today,” a transport official said.

A licence can be renewed any time up to a period of five years after the previous licence expires. If the driver applies for a licence within the 30-day period, the duration of validity of the renewed licence will start from the date of expiry. The Prime Minister’s licence was renewed for five years. If, however, the driver seeks renewal after 30 days, the validity starts from the date of renewal.

The Prime Minister need not have taken the trouble of driving to the transport office. The renewal rules do not require taking a driving test.

Delhi transport officials, who kept the office open on a Sunday, told The Telegraph they had offered to deliver the Prime Minister’s licence to his residence but Singh insisted on driving to the RTO himself.

“Once the person has provided all necessary documents, licences have been delivered at home in some cases in the past to avoid security hassles,” an official said.

The Congress said the Prime Minister’s decision to drive down was uncommon but showed how he remained a humble citizen.

“It is a very positive message to the nation that the Prime Minister himself drives out to renew his licence. It doesn’t normally happen. But the Prime Minister is simple and humble,” Congress spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed told a television channel.

Owning and driving one’s own car isn’t as uncommon for non-VIP politicians though, at least in Delhi.

Vijay Jolly of the BJP, who took on Sheila Dikshit in the 2008 Assembly polls, owns a Mercedes Benz E class, a Mahindra Scorpio, a Honda Civic, a Hyundai Santro and a Maruti van.

Mahabal Mishra of the Congress drives a Toyota Prado. His colleagues Subhash Chopra and Kiran Walia drive sedans — Chopra owns a Skoda Octavia and Walia an Opel Astra.