‘We did nothing wrong’: Indian truck drivers challenge California over mass licence cancellations | World News
Thousands of Indian truck drivers in California have launched a legal challenge against the state after being told their commercial driving licences will be cancelled. Drivers say the move threatens their livelihoods and has left their families in limbo. The lawsuit follows decisions by the California Department of Motor Vehicles to revoke licences issued to immigrant drivers after a federal audit flagged problems with expiry dates. Many of the affected drivers are Punjabi Sikhs, according to advocacy groups, who say the crackdown has led to increased profiling of drivers in the industry.The dispute centres on around 20,000 commercial driver’s licences (CDLs) that the DMV says were issued with expiration dates extending beyond the period drivers were authorised to stay and work in the United States. On 6 November, the agency sent 60-day cancellation notices to roughly 17,000 drivers, a figure that has since risen as more cases were reviewed.
Truck drivers say they are being punished for state errors
Civil rights groups argue the problem stems from clerical mistakes made by the DMV itself, not wrongdoing by drivers. Under California law, they say, the agency is required either to correct such errors or allow licence holders to reapply for amended documents. Instead, the DMV halted the issuing, renewal and correction of non-resident CDLs, leaving drivers with no clear way to fix the issue.“The state of California must help these drivers because the clerical errors threatening their livelihoods are of the state’s own making,” said Munmeeth Kaur, legal director of the Sikh Coalition, which filed the class-action lawsuit alongside the Asian Law Caucus.
Federal pressure and political fallout
Advocacy groups say the crackdown followed increased scrutiny from the Trump administration after a fatal truck crash in Florida earlier this year became a national political issue. Federal officials accused several states, including California, of lax licensing standards and pushed tougher enforcement of immigration and English-language proficiency rules for commercial drivers.The Sikh Coalition says the response has had wider consequences, including racial profiling of Sikh truckers, many of whom wear turbans and beards as part of their faith. Industry figures warn that stricter federal policies could remove hundreds of thousands of drivers from the workforce nationwide over the coming years.
Livelihoods and supply chains at risk
For drivers, the immediate impact is stark. Losing a CDL means losing the legal right to work, while the threatened cancellation of regular driving licences would prevent them from driving at all. Many affected drivers are the sole earners for their families and have invested heavily in trucks, homes and small transport businesses.“If the court does not step in, we will see a devastating wave of unemployment that harms families and destabilises supply chains,” Kaur said.The DMV has declined to comment on the lawsuit but has previously said it is prepared to reissue licences if federal objections are lifted. The plaintiffs argue the agency already has the authority under state law to correct or reinstate the licences without waiting for Washington.
