Rude officers yell and manhandle advertising professional after she refuses to move from footpath of road closed off for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's convoy
'What could've been a starry night turned out to be a scary one for me,' advertising professional Shilika Roy, 24, tweeted on December 13. The reason for the scare were several police officers, ironically on 'VIP bandobast' duty for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, someone who has consistently lamented the country's VIP culture. Not only did the cops speak rudely with Roy, but also manhandled her. She has now sought action against them.
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Shilika Roy tweeted on the incident
Roy's night of police horrors began after her friends dropped her off near Avion Hotel on the Western Express Highway. Then, the Worli resident booked an Uber at 10.22 pm to go home. The cab was supposed to arrive on the opposite side of the road, so she crossed over to wait there.
Roy's night of police horrors began after her friends dropped her off near Avion Hotel on the Western Express Highway. Then, the Worli resident booked an Uber at 10.22 pm to go home. The cab was supposed to arrive on the opposite side of the road, so she crossed over to wait there.
'Go in the gully'
"Then, a male police officer asked me where I wanted to go. I said I'm waiting for my cab. He allowed me to wait there. My cab crossed the location and went ahead so I started walking towards it. Meanwhile, the cops asked the cab to leave, so it got cancelled and I had to wait again on the footpath," Roy told mid-day, adding, "It was around 10.40 pm when a policewoman asked me to wait inside a gully. As any girl would do for her safety, I refused to wait in an unknown gully full of men."
I was left wondering why we keep blaming political parties, past & present governments and leaders when the issue is with behaviour at the grass-root level. We have allowed VIP culture, we have allowed fear to creep in to our lives, we have allowed ourselves to lose perspective.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
But of course, fear conquers all.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
13 years in Bombay, this is the worst experience I've had. It left me shaking in anger and deeply upset.
Having said all of this, it's not the city, the government or the police I intend to draw attention to. It's the people. It's us. The only time I had the policewoman's sympathy was when I asked her to imagine herself in my place because she is as much a citizen as I am.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
I even got down to explaining simple logic like - I'm a citizen - looking for a cab on the highway - where will I find it - on the highway.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
Police: Par VIP aa raha hai!
I found myself telling them repeatedly: Aapka logic galat hai
But obviously they couldn't comprehend.
Now I'll tell you why I think it's scary.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
It's scary because people are so scared. From everything I was told, the one consistent and strong vibe was fear. How much this fear tactic has been drilled into us, we don't even realise. So much so that we stop looking for logic.
So many thousands of citizens being inconvenienced, for 1 VIP @narendramodi Is that what power is for. Aren't they all government servants. Is this how the VIP or the Police are supposed to serve us citizens?
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
I still didn't budge. Stood there alone on that footpath.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
The VIP entourage passed by and within seconds, none of those policemen and women were to be seen.
At that point, I felt the saddest and angriest I've ever felt.
Me: Aap pagal ho kya
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
Police: Dikhao, hum check karenge@MumbaiPolice opened my bags, took things out, stuffed them back in and threw one bag down. All this while hurling abuses at me and constantly cribbing in Marathi about how I'm being a pain and not letting them do their job.
The same policewoman comes to me again and straightaway grabs me by my arm and starts pulling me towards the gully.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
Police: Chali ja waha pe, humare naukri chali jayegi, etc.
I resisted and repeatedly screamed: Don't touch me
She lets go and asks: Tere bag mein kuch hai kya
Policewoman said, stay here for 10 mins till the entourage passes. I reluctantly agreed and stood there.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
Around 10 mins had passed, I'm still standing there trying to book another Uber.
3.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
Agar aapko kuch ho gaya, toh fir hum sab aapki madad karenge
Me: Main kuch bura hone ka wait karungi taaki tab aap apna service de sake.
After some more yelling at Brihan Mumbai Police, they let me be on the footpath, stuck to the wall of a shop so I could be hidden.
1.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
Police: Hum apne marzee se rules nahi banate hai, upar se order aaya hai.
Aap upar wale ko complaint kijiye.
Me: Kahaan hai upar wala? Ask him to come to me because I'm inconvenienced.
Police: Twitter pe likhiye!
2.
Humari naukri chali jayegi, please gully mein jaiye
Which attracted some more police men and women (might've been around 10 people).
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
By now I'm yelling at them on an empty WEH, with around 10 policemen and women around me and here are some of the things I was told -
While I'm still speaking to the driver on the phone trying to get him to own up to his mistake, three police women come to me saying please keep walking ahead or get inside one of the gullies.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
I refused to walk any further or hide in a shady gully.
to keep pedestrians off the main road (and even off the footpaths).
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
Now I wanted to head home, to Worli. Booked an Uber and had to walk ahead quite a bit because 'Madam please saamne jaiye taxi ke liye'.
Uber cancelled (what's new).
Traffic in Bombay has been crazier than usual today. Any guesses why?@narendramodi is in town.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
So that implies a crazy lot of security because, VIP!
Traffic flow from the Airport signal towards Worli had been stopped and a lot of police were deployed all along the highway
What could've been a starry night (Geminids meteor shower) turned out to be a scary one for me. Shortly after we started our journey to Vangani, I decided to go back home instead because I wasn't feeling too well. So I got off where Avion Hotel is on the WEH in Bombay.
— Shilika Roy (@shilikaroy) December 14, 2017
Shilika Roy tweeted on the incident
Roy and the cop then had an argument as the cop kept insisting Roy had no option but to wait there as a VIP was going to pass. Roy refused, after which cops began yelling at her saying it's an order and their jobs would be at risk if she didn't move.
'Tweet to top boss'
The quarrel continued and one of the cops asked her to complain to their top bosses if she had an issue with the rules. When she asked where she could do so, he said Twitter. Then, a second policeman came and insisted that she go in the gully or they would lose their jobs. The cops finally allowed Roy to wait on the footpath. But the policewomen asked her to go further back so she would not be seen.
Roy waited for 10-15 minutes, stuck to the wall of a shop, trying to book another cab. But her troubles were far from over. "The same policewoman grabbed me by my arm and started pulling me. She was applying physical pressure on me without any instigation. There was no communication or even eye contact in the time I was waiting on the footpath. She began yelling at me," said Roy.
A warning to the cops
The women proceeded to check her bags and threw one of them down. "All this while, she hurled abuses at me and constantly cribbed in Marathi about how I'm being a pain and not letting them do their job. I still didn't move. The VIP entourage passed by and within seconds, none of those cops were to be seen," she added. Roy finally got a cab back home at 11.08 pm.
Since then, Roy's complaint has been taken down and referred to the Vile Parle police, who wrote her an email saying, "Considering your inconvenience, we have warned the lady constable and policeman for the incident. We will also take care of citizens of our area during VIP movement and bandobast." Laxman Chavan, senior inspector, Vile Parle police station confirmed the same to mid-day.
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