BANGALORE: In a desperate attempt to curb drag racing in the city, police are now booking parents of minors caught in the act.

If booked, parents can't escape paying the spot fine. They'll have to appear before the magistrate's court, where they could be fined Rs 1,000 or/and sentenced to three months in jail. Police will invoke Section 5 of the Motor Vehicles Act , under which the guardian of the minor can be booked if he is caught violating a traffic rule.

Recent anti-drag racing drives have shown that many of the offenders are teenagers . "We have already started booking people under this section. Although I don't have the exact numbers, more than 10 cases have been booked in the last month alone," said B Dayanada, additional commissioner of police, traffic.

In 2008, one of the biggest drag-racing tragedies rocked the city when Mohammed Mukhram, a drag racer, was shot dead by military guards. Mukhram had unwittingly trespassed into the grounds of the Flag Staff House, residence of the Commander of Karnataka and Kerala sub-area, while fleeing from a police crackdown on drag racers.

Five years later, traffic police admit that drag racing continues to be a huge menace in Bangalore, and that the law is no deterrent. On an average, 300 drag racers are booked every year but these statistics do not give the complete picture of the late-night daredevilry on city streets.

There are patterns when it comes to drag racing. Bikers frequent Bellary Road, Old Airport Road, NICE Road, Hosur Road, Cubbon Road and the elevated highway along Hosur Road.

