'I Haven't Touched My Car Since The Porsche Incident'

'Two people have been killed and the driver got bail and was given junk food to eat.'
'Why is he being given such treatment?'

"I used to drive my dad's car regularly. Ever since the incident, I have not touched the steering wheel. It was definitely a wake-up call," says a 17 year old from Pune who says that the Porsche incident which involved a 17 year old who drove over two people, killing them, acts as a deterrent to his illegal, underage driving.

Another 17 year old from Mumbai says that even if he wishes to drive his car, his parents would not allow it because of the recency of the Pune accident.

"Though they trust me with a car, they do not want to take a chance. Maybe the police can catch me without a license, or I can actually get into an accident."

By and large, 17 year olds I spoke to have taken the Porsche incident seriously and have reacted in two major ways.

Firstly, there is outrage against the legal system.

"Two people have been killed and the driver got bail and was given junk food to eat. Why is he being given such treatment?" asks a 17-year-old girl in Mumbai.

"It is common for car crashes to happen, and people to die from it. But the whole thing about covering up the evidence, blaming the driver, and switching blood samples is stupid to me," says a 17 year old from Chennai.

"Only people with money can urge doctors to change evidence like this. But corruption is expected where rich people are involved," he adds.

Should the 17 year old be blamed solely for the incident, or should the parents be punished too?

The answers were mixed, but eventually, they did consider the parents to be more accountable for not enforcing rules and strictness over their child.

"I also drive a car, and my parents know of it. But if I ever get into an accident, I think my parents will have a role to play in it because currently their imposition of discipline as to how fast I can drive, etc determines the way I drive," says a Pune teenager of the same age.

"He should be treated as an adult, but only partially. His punishment should be strong enough for him to realise his mistake, but not strong enough to hinder his life when he grows up," this teenager adds.

The 17 year olds were also asked about the role that the friends sitting in the backseat played in the incident.

"The friends sitting in the backseat are also to be blamed because whenever I drive with my friends, there is a lot of encouragement from my friends's side to increase the speed of the car," says a Mumbai teenager.

"So, I think the friends must have also forced him to speed," alleges this Mumbai teen, "Or at best, they must not have stopped him from speeding or drunk driving."

Presth Bhardwaj is a Student at FLAME University

Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com