NHAI Slaps Toll Operator With 20 Lakh Fine After Staff Beat Up Army Man

In the last couple of days, a video from a toll plaza in Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut has gone viral on the internet. In this video, the toll booth staff were seen assaulting an Army jawan returning to duty. The video went viral, and now the government authority or the National Highways Authority of India has taken action in this case. They have slapped a fine of Rs 20 lakh on the toll booth operator over this incident.

The incident happened on Sunday, 17 August 2025, at the Bhuni toll plaza in the Sarurpur area. The Army jawan, Kapil, was returning to duty when he got stuck in the long queue at the toll plaza. Kapil is a soldier from Gotka village. He was flying to Srinagar from Delhi and was on his way to the airport.

When he came across the traffic jam, he got out of the vehicle and asked them to let him pass as he was getting late for the flight. As per reports, the toll plaza operators threw the jawan’s identity card, and soon things escalated. In fact, as per The Indian Tolls (Army & Air Force) Act, 1901, an Army personnel on duty is entitled to exemption at toll plazas.

Both parties had an argument, and before he knew it, the toll plaza operators had tied him to the barrier and started beating him. Kapil’s family, who reached the spot, told the media that there were around 10–12 people beating Kapil at the toll plaza with rods. In the video, it was clear that the Army jawan was attacked brutally.

The whole incident was captured by locals and was also recorded on the CCTV installed at the toll plaza. On the basis of the video, a complaint was filed at the local police station, and six employees at the toll plaza have already been arrested.

Apart from the Rs 20 lakh fine, NHAI has also terminated the contract with the toll collecting agency and has debarred or blacklisted them from future participation in toll plaza bids.

Even the Indian Army’s Central Command came across the incident and posted on social media, “The Army strongly condemns such incidents against a serving soldier. The highest authorities of Uttar Pradesh Police have been approached to bring the guilty to book.” This incident sparked protests among locals and outrage on social media. This is probably the reason behind such swift action against the toll booth operating company.

This is a clear case of road rage, and what happened to the Army jawan is extremely unfortunate. This is not the first time we have come across an incident like this. Many people have faced rude behaviour from toll plaza operators across the country.

Sadly, this is not going to be the last incident, as we keep seeing such arguments at toll plazas in different parts of the country. If you ever find yourself in such a situation, ensure that you never engage with the other party.

Always stay inside your vehicle and contact the police for help. Engaging with the other party will only escalate things, and before you know it, the argument may turn into a physical assault.