Raghav Chadha calls highway tolls an organised loot

New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Raghav Chadha on Monday called the country’s highway toll collection an “organised loot”, saying mismanagement and excessive charges were placing an “unbearable” burden on commuters.

“Toll is taking a big toll on the people of India,” Chadha said, arguing that “persistent congestion, utter mismanagement and over-profiteering” at toll plazas had turned the experience of road users from “inconvenience to injustice”.

Raising the issue through a zero hour mention in the Rajya Sabha, the MP claimed toll payments had become a form of “harassment”, contending that Indians already face one of the highest tax incidences on road use.

He noted that buyers pay GST on vehicles purchased with income that has already been taxed, in addition to road tax and infrastructure cess. Fuel purchases, he added, attract excise duty, special excise duty, VAT, road development cess and infrastructure cess.

“On top of these, toll is to be paid on highways. This is becoming unbearable for citizens,” he said.

He said the situation was worsened by the “extremely poor quality” of many roads, pointing to deficiencies such as inadequate drainage, lack of lane markings, poor lighting and insufficient safety infrastructure. Poor maintenance, leading to potholes, black spots and surface deformities, was a reason for thousands of road-accident deaths each year, he added.

Chadha cited recent Kerala and Jammu & Kashmir High Court rulings that operators could not collect toll on roads that were not maintained to required standards.

He also highlighted frequent congestion and delays at toll plazas due to lane closures and poor management. “Highways are meant for seamless connectivity, seamless mobility. But who will calculate the cost of congestion at toll plazas?” he said, listing wasted fuel, lost productivity, missed appointments and mental agony as hidden costs borne by commuters.