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One positive step, but a long long way to go. Just yesterday a cop snatched my phone because I had recorded his colleagues driving without seatbelts on (which i

One positive step, but a long long way to go. Just yesterday a cop snatched my phone because I had recorded his colleagues driving without seatbelts on (which is a traffic offence in India). He told me (lied) what I was doing is illegal. This is just an example of how messed up the whole system here is. What can you expect from a country where one in three elected representatives have criminal cases pending against them. [0] 0 http://m.timesofindia.com/home/news/Every-third-newly-elected-MP-has-criminal-background/articleshow/35306963.cms http://m.timesofindia.com/home/news/Every-third-newly-electe...

zamalek 12y ago
I think this is a problem in every 3rd world country. At least India is making positive steps.
MagicWishMonkey 12y ago
On the way to the airport in Mumbai we were flagged over by a cop and he told us that having luggage on the roof of the car was "illegal" and he issued us a 200 rupee "fine" for it. If we had been running late we might have missed our flight because that jackass wanted to shake us down for a couple of dollars. I love India but the amount of corruption is really depressing.
- puranjay 12y ago
  At least he had an excuse. New Year's Even 2011, I was driving back home around 12:20 AM. Pulled over since I got a got a phone call from my parents. Was talking to them when a couple of cops on bikes stopped by and asked for my papers. I gave them whatever they needed. Nothing was out of order. Then one of the cops blatantly asked me for some cash. I said I had everything was in order. His reply? "Sir, thoda cash do na. Naya saal hai. Daru peeni hai" ("Sir, it's new year's eve. Give me some cash, we want to get drunk")
  - keerthiko 12y ago
    I would rather pay the honest guy who's just being a beggar than the douchebag fishing for borderline legitimate reasons to charge illegitimate fines from law-abiding citizens.
    - TazeTSchnitzel 12y ago
      Both are abusing their authority, though.
    - btian 12y ago
      That cop was definitely not being a beggar...
    - drzaiusapelord 12y ago
      He's not a beggar when he can use state sanction violence against you with impunity. He's just a lazy fraud.
    - vithlani 12y ago
      The next time this happens, ask the cop what his official salary is. Somethings might come into perspective then...
leephillips 12y ago
This ruling is a positive step, but India still has its notorious law criminalizing the offending of religious feelings[0], and, as far as I know, import of The Satanic Verses is still banned. Police falsely claiming that photographing or recording them on the job is illegal is a recurring problem in the US, too. [0]http://blog.newhumanist.org.uk/2012/07/sanal-edamarukus-situation-worsens.html http://blog.newhumanist.org.uk/2012/07/sanal-edamarukus-situ...
- lotsofmangos 12y ago
  I have often wondered if you can respond to a blasphemy charge, with a blasphemy charge, as long as the first charge is from a different group than your own, on the basis that a demand to abide by the principles of a different faith than your own is clearly a blasphemous request.
  - avemuri 12y ago
    The law isn't against blasphemy, it's against offending religious sentiments and is deliberately vague. You'd have to prove that the group claiming to be offended is not offended. Stupid, but India has a long history of religious violence, so perhaps its a case of pragmatism over principle as a justification.
    - IndianAstronaut 12y ago
      There are efforts at an international level to stifle religious expression as well. This is championed by Islamic states to prevent any criticism of Islam. This is a growing global threat to freedom of expression and it often finds its way into online censorship.
    - lotsofmangos 12y ago
      Even better. I just need to be religiously offended by the very idea that mocking other people's gods could be religiously offensive, given they are obviously not gods and therefore incapable of inciting offense according to my faith (any suggestion otherwise being clearly very offensive), so then any charge of religious offense is then automatically religiously offensive to me.
danans 12y ago
Is it surprising that these sorts of things occur frequently in societies where the incentives for low-level corruption are huge, and the practical consequences are low? I'm not sure how reforming the constitution can directly reduce the occurrence of police shakedowns, after all, it's already completely illegal, but nobody with the power cares to enforce that law.
xzlzx 12y ago
It sounds like the chances of having a criminal case pending against you is pretty high given your description of how easy it is to be accused of doing something illegal.

zamalek 12y ago

I think this is a problem in every 3rd world country. At least India is making positive steps.

MagicWishMonkey 12y ago

On the way to the airport in Mumbai we were flagged over by a cop and he told us that having luggage on the roof of the car was "illegal" and he issued us a 200 rupee "fine" for it. If we had been running late we might have missed our flight because that jackass wanted to shake us down for a couple of dollars. I love India but the amount of corruption is really depressing.

puranjay 12y ago
At least he had an excuse. New Year's Even 2011, I was driving back home around 12:20 AM. Pulled over since I got a got a phone call from my parents. Was talking to them when a couple of cops on bikes stopped by and asked for my papers. I gave them whatever they needed. Nothing was out of order. Then one of the cops blatantly asked me for some cash. I said I had everything was in order. His reply? "Sir, thoda cash do na. Naya saal hai. Daru peeni hai" ("Sir, it's new year's eve. Give me some cash, we want to get drunk")
- keerthiko 12y ago
  I would rather pay the honest guy who's just being a beggar than the douchebag fishing for borderline legitimate reasons to charge illegitimate fines from law-abiding citizens.
  - TazeTSchnitzel 12y ago
    Both are abusing their authority, though.
  - btian 12y ago
    That cop was definitely not being a beggar...
  - drzaiusapelord 12y ago
    He's not a beggar when he can use state sanction violence against you with impunity. He's just a lazy fraud.
  - vithlani 12y ago
    The next time this happens, ask the cop what his official salary is. Somethings might come into perspective then...

leephillips 12y ago

This ruling is a positive step, but India still has its notorious law criminalizing the offending of religious feelings[0], and, as far as I know, import of The Satanic Verses is still banned. Police falsely claiming that photographing or recording them on the job is illegal is a recurring problem in the US, too. [0]http://blog.newhumanist.org.uk/2012/07/sanal-edamarukus-situation-worsens.html http://blog.newhumanist.org.uk/2012/07/sanal-edamarukus-situ...

lotsofmangos 12y ago
I have often wondered if you can respond to a blasphemy charge, with a blasphemy charge, as long as the first charge is from a different group than your own, on the basis that a demand to abide by the principles of a different faith than your own is clearly a blasphemous request.
- avemuri 12y ago
  The law isn't against blasphemy, it's against offending religious sentiments and is deliberately vague. You'd have to prove that the group claiming to be offended is not offended. Stupid, but India has a long history of religious violence, so perhaps its a case of pragmatism over principle as a justification.
  - IndianAstronaut 12y ago
    There are efforts at an international level to stifle religious expression as well. This is championed by Islamic states to prevent any criticism of Islam. This is a growing global threat to freedom of expression and it often finds its way into online censorship.
  - lotsofmangos 12y ago
    Even better. I just need to be religiously offended by the very idea that mocking other people's gods could be religiously offensive, given they are obviously not gods and therefore incapable of inciting offense according to my faith (any suggestion otherwise being clearly very offensive), so then any charge of religious offense is then automatically religiously offensive to me.

danans 12y ago

Is it surprising that these sorts of things occur frequently in societies where the incentives for low-level corruption are huge, and the practical consequences are low? I'm not sure how reforming the constitution can directly reduce the occurrence of police shakedowns, after all, it's already completely illegal, but nobody with the power cares to enforce that law.

xzlzx 12y ago

It sounds like the chances of having a criminal case pending against you is pretty high given your description of how easy it is to be accused of doing something illegal.