A friend got caught while lightly inebrieted by Pune Traffic police
Seeking legal advice for a friend who was driving his car after drinking a beer at a regular traffic stop at night. He blew a 400+ on a breathalyser where 300 is the limit (what the traffic cop said). This was a first time offence. I was with him as a passenger.
Now the cop has asked him to come to the traffic police chowki to get the "fatla" and then he will go to the Shivajinagar court with an officer where he is to admit to the offense, say that he was forced to drink 1 small drink by a friend in a party or something similar and just pay the fine. This is what the cop told us and asked to not worry about it.
He wants to understand:
- what is the actual procedure and timeline for this? Will his case be heard right away (within that day) or could it take a while (multiple appearances in court) after getting the fatla / submitting it in court? Is the advice from the cop legit or can it get him in trouble?
- is avoiding the entire process (collecting the fatla and going to court) advisable?
- what are the risks of not going to court? What are the risks of admitting to the offence? Can his license be suspended?
- any general advice?
Note: he is not from Pune, 31yr old male, driving his own (new) car. His license was handed back to him although usual process seems to be that the license is taken away (don't know if it's relevant to the case). He willingly submitted to the test thinking he wouldn't blow past the limit.