VIP treatment: Karnataka govt to use ambulance lane on highways for MLAs

Karnataka Public Works Minister C C Patil on Wednesday told the Legislative Assembly that the ambulance lane on state highways will be used for VIPs after legislators demanded preferential treatment while passing through toll plazas.

Patil was responding to a calling attention notice raised by JD(S) legislator K Annadani in the Legislative Assembly. The Malavalli MLA demanded a VIP lane for legislators to pass through tolls without any hassle.

“State highways have two-lane roads, not four-lane. So, having a separate VIP lane on both sides is difficult on two-lane highways. There’s an ambulance lane. Instructions will be issued to allow VIP movement on ambulance lanes,” Patil said.

Annadani said legislators end up spending ten minutes at toll plazas despite having a pass. “Even if we show the pass, those at the toll plaza scan it and ask for ID. We end up wasting time while having urgent works to attend to. We face unnecessary harassment and humiliation,” he said.

Citing the example of the NICE Road, Annadani said: “Our situation is miserable at the toll plaza. The gunman informs the toll personnel that there's an MLA in the car. Still, our pass gets scanned. We can’t even argue if there’s a woman at the toll plaza.”

Another JD(S) MLA KM Shivalinge Gowda (Arsikere) angrily asked the government to withdraw its pass given to legislators. “Given the way we are treated, we might as well pay money. Take your pass back. This is a question of respect,” he said, demanding a separate lane.

Patil explained that IDs are asked by the toll plaza personnel to prevent the misuse of passes. “Also, due to heavy movement of vehicles, private vehicles are allowed on reserved lanes. We will issue instructions to prioritize VIP vehicles and ensure MLAs aren’t troubled,” Patil said.

When MLAs continued to persist, Speaker Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri said he would convene a separate meeting on this with the minister to find a solution. “This is a problem of 224 MLAs. There are lakhs of people who use these roads and they have their own problems. So, let's discuss this internally,” Kageri said.