All over India, this topic is in the news again. Amid reports of non-Marathi speakers being beaten over a language issue in Maharashtra, a video of a political leader’s son is going viral. In the video, he is seen drunk and shirtless, misbehaving with a Marathi social media influencer and actress in the middle of the road.

The actress, who is also active on social media, shared this video online. In the video, the man is sitting in a car without a shirt and is using bad language while behaving badly with her. While many people are upset with his behaviour, others also noticed that he was driving without wearing a shirt. This made people ask — is there any rule or dress code for driving in India? To find out the truth, some reports spoke to transport officers to check if there is any rule about what drivers should wear.

What Is the Rule?

As per transport officers, there is a dress code for commercial vehicle drivers. These drivers must wear a khaki uniform, a khaki belt, and leather shoes. But for normal people, there is no dress code. Anyone can drive wearing any type of clothes.

Can You Get a Challan for Wearing Slippers While Driving?

No rule says a challan will be given for wearing slippers while driving. But wearing slippers while driving is not safe. Especially in the rainy season, wearing slippers while riding a two-wheeler can cause problems. It may affect your control over the vehicle. In such cases, a challan might be given, but there is no fixed rule about it.

What Happened in 2019?

In 2019, when some changes were made in the Motor Vehicle Act, many fake messages were shared online. These messages said that people cannot drive wearing slippers, lungis, vests, or half-shirts. It also said that driving in such clothes would lead to a challan. These rumours went viral.

The Government Gave a Clear Answer

Later, the official social media account of the Union Road Transport Ministry cleared the confusion. A post was shared on ‘X’ (formerly Twitter) saying, “Beware of rumours!” It clearly said that there is no rule in the Motor Vehicle Act about clothes like vests, half-shirts, lungis, or slippers.

There will be no challan for:

  • Wearing a vest, lungi, or half-shirt
  • Driving with a dirty windscreen
  • Not keeping an extra bulb
  • Wearing slippers while driving
  • These are just rumours. There is no such law in the Motor Vehicle Act.