Delhi transport minister directs strict action against car dealers over delay in giving RCs

New Delhi: Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot has directed the department officials to take strict action, including suspension of their licence, against any car dealer if they do not hand over the registration certificate to the private car buyer at the time of purchase of the vehicle.

In 2021, the Delhi government had begun the facility of the buyers getting a registration certificate (RC) for their vehicles directly from the dealers. There are dealers that have self-registration facility.

Gahlot has taken cognisance of complaints from private vehicle buyers in Delhi regarding delays in receiving the RC on the same day at the time of purchase, despite a mandate by the Delhi government, an official statement from his office said.

Gahlot convened a meeting with senior officials of the Transport Department and directed them to take strict action against the non-compliant dealers, including suspension of trade licence, it added.

The minister also has plans to hold a meeting with the dealers next week over the issue.

“It is unacceptable that vehicle buyers are facing delays in receiving their registration certificates at the time of delivery of their purchased vehicle. The Delhi government has made provisions for same-day issuance of RCs, and any deviation from this must be addressed promptly.

“We will take strict action against any dealer found not adhering to this mandate. Ensuring timely issuance of RCs is essential for the convenience of vehicle buyers and the efficiency of our transport system,” he was quoted as saying in the statement.

Last month, the Delhi government’s transport department had directed all its district offices to seek reports on issuance of vehicle RCs from the vehicle dealers under their jurisdiction on a fortnightly basis. The directions were issued following complaints that sellers were not handing over the RCs to the buyers at the time of purchase of vehicles.

The Delhi government initiated the printing of RCs through self-registration by dealers in March 2021, with the first RC issued on March 17, 2021. This initiative was expanded across Delhi and by September 2021, all self-registration dealers in the city were empowered to print RCs.

The hand-to-hand RC or RC printing facility at dealer points was launched by the Kejriwal government to eliminate long wait times and the need for the buyers to visit the RTOs, ensuring hassle-free vehicle registration.

Self-registration facilities were provided to the dealers in Delhi to issue the RC for non-transport (private) vehicles at the time of vehicle delivery.

However, recent observations by Gahlot revealed that the dealers were not providing RCs on the day of vehicle delivery, with delays of two to three weeks and in some cases more than a month.

Delhi has 263 dealers authorised to print RCs at their dealer points. Delhi registers approximately six lakh new vehicles annually.