[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by Pacifica

Having had the weekend to relax and think over this case again I can't help thinking now that the cops went overboard in thrashing this moron. The pent up annoyance of a week's driving through the crazy roads of the NCR made me focus only on the original crime and overlook the police high-handedness in dealing with it.

Six months in jail would've served the purpose just as well, and in a civilized manner. All the police really need to do is setup positions at random traffic choke points in Noida, arrest all the wrong side drivers they can catch, and prosecute them for rash and dangerous driving. They'd just need to do it for a week and send maybe a dozen culprits to jail - the menace of wrong side driving will disappear like magic from Noida's roads.

Of course, this would entail the cops acting in an honest and even-handed manner. I wonder if that will ever happen in our blighted country.

^^ I agree

Our judicial system needs a thorough makeover.

The problem is, the cops catch the offenders and book them under section 279 of the IPC (Rash & Negligent Driving on a public path/way) and then send them home. The violator will receive a summons from the court for his hearing. There will be a few false alarms in between, where neither the judge will be available, nor the violator. The case gets postponed for several months and then after many years, the verdict will be out.

Generally, the court passes a judgement based on the facts and evidence of the case. There wouldn't be enough or adequate evidence to prove his guilt. On top of that, if there is no death or injury involved, the court usually lets the offender go with a fine of a 1000 bucks. The court always gives the benefit of doubt to the offender if the evidence is lacking, and under most circumstances will ensure that they won't need to serve jail-time. Especially if there is no injury/death involved.

So after 2 years of visiting court and laying eggs, the offender will be required to pay 1k and go home. What would he have learnt from it? Apart from a few irritating court-visits and a lighter pocket (which wouldn't have hurt him given that he had 2 years to collect the sum) he hasn't been really 'taken to task'. So he has effectively learnt nothing and will in all probability repeat the offense again.

Now as for the cops who thrashed him. It is illegal and immoral to beat-up a person. According to the Police Act, cops are allowed to use brute-force only when they need to disperse a mob or if there are illegal protests being carried out. In fact, all they are supposed to do is use the necessary and adequate force to 'shoo' them away.

The cop can be taken to task and the violator here can claim compensation.

So what's the moral of the story? Break the law, don't worry. As long as you don't kill anyone or hurt anyone, the court will let you off. And if the cops act too smart you can take them to the cleaners.

What a beautiful place we live in.

[ntomer]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

There is no dilemma. Cops could have registered a case of dangerous driving. That offence can carry a jail term, which is a deterrent.
Cops thrashed the guy because he is a soft target. I routinely see villagers with their tractor trolleys driving the wrong side in the Fast lane on that expressway. None of them even get challaned.
It has a 100kmph limit. Imagine what would happen if a car-trolley collision happens at 100kmph!

Tanveer, this guy wasn't a soft target. He belongs to a near-by village and was abusing cops about what he can do to them. Probably they got fed up of that and gave him the taste of his own medicine...

[DRIVE_ADDICT]

Let me speak out what my heart feels first, I felt good that the cop thrashed the man!. This type of behaviour on road should be punished. The guy on the wrong lane is risking the law abiding fellow citizens life.

But my mind says its wrong. Police have no rights to physically punish him!. Instead they should punish him by law. But I feel just filing a challan would be of no use.

I think the enforcement should come hard!. Cancel the licenses of offenders and seize the vehicles and let the public know. Do this for all offenders including buses/trucks/tractors.

[Selective]

I don't think this story is about physically punishing someone, just because he was driving on wrong side of highway. There has to be something more than what is being known! Our cops go thru so much of pressure every day, something else must have triggered them to abuse physically.

Once, I have witnessed a guy driving his car abusing the cop physically at a road cross which was manned by the cop. This guy went mad just because, cop stopped the traffic when this guy was at the front and didn't let him pass thru. And when cop let go his side of traffic, he just rolled down the window and gave a punch to cop and drove away fast! No one recorded this, media never got to know, cop didn't have time to react and he was busy controlling the traffic.

[selfdrive]

The only reason we are discussing this incident is because the cops beat up the guy. Otherwise we would have just ranted a bit on the bad drivers thread and given up.

While I dont support such beatings, the main problem is our reaction to it as a country. Some people will protest, some will support, the court will adjourn and finally levy a paltry fine to the driver, suspend the cops for some time. But we will not improve. People will keep driving on the wrong side, cops will keep beating people for varied reasons. There is no remedy to the disease, we only shout about the symptoms and after a while either find something else to shout about or just get plain bored and return to our daily grind.

[noopster]

I don't buy it. Cops do NOT thrash people for driving on the wrong side of the road.

In fact in most cases, they just look the other way. I don't know about Gurgaon but here in Pune and even southwards along NH4 there is no action taken on locals who routinely drive on the wrong lane with high beams on to save driving the correct way a km or two. Or less.

So when someone claims he is beaten up for driving on the wrong side, which is a minor offence in the eyes of our authorities, I get very suspicious.

Cops usually beat up people to assert authority over them (as in when someone threatens them) or to extract confessions. I can't imagine either of those being the case here. There is something black in the lentils!

[moralfibre]

I am not sure whether thrashing this particular individual was the right choice and agree with many others who feel that there's more to the story than what is being fed in the newspaper. Cops usually don't beat up people. I had personally gone to a police station with a friend in April and had seen notices put up by human rights commission and various NGO's with their contact numbers for help in such situations. Cops are quite scared to do that without a background check.

Coming to the topic of wrong side driving, some punishment that could cause public embarrassment would be a good starter. I remember a time in 2004 when Carter road was a stunt rider's paradise. I had once gone to Carters with friends and saw how dangerously these bikers would pull out stunts in the middle of traffic. There were about a dozen cops in plain clothes who stood next to a speed breaker where these wannabe stunt riders would slow down. They stood in the way of these bikers and pulled them over. A couple of slaps later, they stripped them to their undies and made them sit on the footpath in murga position. I am sure those boys wouldn't have high revved their bikes on one wheel after that. Some more ideas would be to clean pan stains off the walls, sweeping roads, washing public toilets, etc and publish a picture while in the act in a newspaper daily that has a dedicated section with all details of the person. That would be deterring enough?

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

Some more ideas would be to clean pan stains off the walls, sweeping roads, washing public toilets, etc and publish a picture while in the act in a newspaper daily that has a dedicated section with all details of the person. That would be deterring enough?

While I agree with this kind of punishment, I am not sure that free publicity is a deterrent for all. For some people, notoriety is the stepping stone to politics. just see the numerous flex boards around and decide if any of them are famous or popular due to any good deeds.
and by the way, arranging free pilgrimage tours or free bus passes is not really something that qualifies. that is actually buying someones loyalty.

I do agree that cops are more wary of beating up someone. there may have been some other provocation for this.

[maheshramaling]

First of all, none of us seem to have a first hand information except the article which says that police thrashed a driver for traffic violation. It's too difficult to come to a conclusion on who and what is wrong here.

Irrespective - driving on the wrong side of the road - is a traffic violation and if as per law - this person has to just pay a petty sum as fine - SO BE IT.
It is ridiculous to say that since the guy has to only pay a petty sum - and might repeat this - isn't justified to beat him. It's the system which levies petty sum as penalty for such violations - to be questioned & charged.

If I were this guy and got beaten up and finally end up paying a petty sum in court - I would most probably repeat this and might also get someone to beat those who beat me. Simple and Period.

Instead, had I got a penalty of cleaning that section of road for a week or had to help in cooking food in a orphanage - I would have not repeated such offense or any other offense till that thoughts are in my mind.

I took off the sun film in my cars prompty a day before the deadline was to end - but was it because of the fear of 100 or 300 bucks penalty....No...but I don't want those cops to mess with my car and windows since the rule said the cops are empowered to remove the sun film and I could imagine how they will bring it down. That is the fear the law needs to bring in and not by hitting and thrashing someone - be it a cop or anyone.

So - in my observation - it is the law which is at fault and it is the one which needs change, first.

[pgsagar]

Excellent treatment meted out by cops. I'm all support of cops. I'm sure he nust have also argued with cops, in addition to wrong-side driving. What do you expect from such rogues who do wrong-side driving? If this guy was a nice gentle guy then he wouldn't have driven on the wrong-side, in the first place. We see many such incidents where they drive up against you and yell at you if you try to make them understand that they just wronged. Some of them even argue with cops, like, "Don't you know who I am? I can get you suspended by just one phone call."

All those people supporting this crook would have sang a different tune if this rogue had hit a biker and killed him. Road is not our bedroom and driving is a VERY VERY serious business. Carelessness makes all the difference between life and death. Very few Indians realise this. Most need to be taught. And some need to be punished this way. Someone said, let court and law decide. Well, we have seen how long law takes to deliver justice. And not to mention the possibility of hiring a smart alec lawyer and getting off the hook. Good job cops! Contrary to popular belief, policemen are not rude with all. They generally behave gently unless provoked. I have not experienced a single incident where a cop shouted or misbehaved with me.

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by pgsagar

All those people supporting this crook would have sang a different tune if this rogue had hit a biker and killed him.

All those people supporting the cops would have sang a different tune had it been their friend or relative or themselves at the receiving end of the police brutality.

Or tomorrow if you are going down the highway at lets say 20kmph more than the posted speed limit and hit a villager who comes into your path "out of nowhere", do quietly get out and get a beating from the villagers as well.

Remember that your right to swing your arms ends where the other man's nose begins. If this does not apply to police, then it surely does not apply to common man.

[speedsatya]

This definitely has to do with something more than driving on the wrong side . Going by my experience , it is diffcult to believe that cops beat him up for driving on the wrong lane .
Maybe something where this driver asked for a receipt for the fine .
Policemen flogging people is not at all acceptable , but a good thing is that this guy will think 100 times in future before daring to drive on the wrong side .

[NinadJoshi]

Instant justice seems like a nice remedy, and some of us do behave offensively enough to deserve it on the odd occasion.

On the flip side, should a corrupt policeman asking and/or accepting a bribe to circumvent his duty be beaten by people right there and then too ?

Which is the bigger evil - feigning ignorance towards the law, or being lawless ? The question gets presented every now and then in our real life.

[vivekz]

I am sure this issue is not so black-and-white. This reminds me of a recent incident, again from Delhi where a policeman was shown throwing bricks at a lady. It was only later that the entire footage was revealed which showed the lady breaking a traffic signal and instigating the policeman by throwing the brick first.

While this person was driving on wrong side, I am sure police had an opportunity to fine him then and there. The reason this matter reached police station would have something to do with denial/ show of power by the driver. And even through I do not have high opinion of Noida police (have experienced them for 2 years), I still think the thrashing was instigated by the offender, at least in some part.

Having said that, I do not think thrashing and violence by police is acceptable unless the offender is truely behaving in an unruly manner. And in this case, I am sure police across the world are given the right to use force.