Union ministers seen riding without helmets

Jaipur, Aug 16 (PTI) Union ministers Piyush Goyal andRajyavardhan Singh Rathore today kicked up a row by riding amotorcycle sans helmets during a ‘Tiranga Yatra’ here. Minister of State for Information and BroadcastingRajyavardhan Singh Rathore was seen riding the bike withoutwearing helmet from Khatipura to Dhankya during the TirangaYatra organised by BJP local unit. Union Power minister Piyush Goyal, who was ridingpillion, was also seen without a helmet. Both the ministerswere wearing turbans in place of the protective head gear. On being asked about their non-adherence to traffic rulesat a press conference here, the BJP leaders claimed it waslegal to wear turbans and ride two-wheelers. As per the law, a person can wear a turban and sit on atwo-wheler, they said. "After a long time, I rode a two-wheeler and it feltnice. I had in the past sat on a two-wheeler during thecampaign rally of Nitin Gadkari. I was riding pillion andGadkari was driving," Goyal said. Union transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari hadalso landed in a controversy when he was caught on cameraentering RSS headquarters in Nagpur in 2014 on his scooterwithout wearing a helmet in violation of traffic rules. Meanwhile, the city traffic police here said it wasmandatory for drivers and pillion riders to wear helmets. Aviolation of the rule attracts a penalty of Rs 200. The police, however, said they were unaware of thetraffic violation by the Union ministers. PTI CORR SRY RGSRY