Bengaluru, Oct. 20 -- The Karnataka High Court has declined to interfere with a culpable homicide charge against a man accused of allowing his 14-year-old son to drive a car that allegedly killed three members of a family. The court stressed that public roads cannot be turned into playgrounds for children and that vehicle steering wheels are not toys to be placed in their hands.

Justice M. Nagaprasanna made the observations while considering a petition filed by Nadeem Ur Rahman, the boy's father. He had challenged the chargesheet filed by the N.R. police and sought to have the charge under Section 304(2) of the Indian Penal Code dropped.

Calling the accident heartbreaking, the court said the legal prohibition on minors driving vehicles ...