Come May 1 and the red beacon will no longer be seen on vehicles of dignitaries and top government officials. In a much welcomed move to end the VIP culture in the country, the Union government banned the use of these red beacon lights, and the accompanying siren. The decision has come more than three years after Supreme Court asked for restrictions on the use of red beacons in 2013.
While it may not seem that difficult a task to drop the red beacon and blaring cars, there are many other practices connected to the VIP culture that need to be banned.
Make way for the VIP
How often have we been caught up in a traffic block for hours to make way for a VIP? And, in many cases, the VIP's vehicle is accompanied by an entourage of other vehicles, and security forces. Angry motorists and blaring horns are not just what these blockades leave behind. Casualties of VIP movement are many—students who missed examinations, job aspirants who missed crucial interviews, commuters who missed trains or flights, and many others who have even lost lives. For instance, according to media reports, in July 2010, eight-year-old Aman Khan who was in need of emergency medical assistance died in Kanpur after his parents could not get him to the hospital on time. They were caught up in a traffic blockade created to make passage for former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's convoy.
Travel toll free
As per the National Highway of India's toll fee rules, 25 categories of people are exempted form paying the fee. This includes the President, Prime Minister, chief ministers, MPs and MLAs, among others. Just when the Modi government has taken a step towards ending the high-handedness of VIP culture, a viral video posted on Twitter today shows BJP MLA Rakesh Rathore slapping a toll plaza employee in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh. Reports suggest that the MLA was angry about having to wait at the toll. Also, his staff in the convoy allegedly refused to pay the toll.
'Quota' on the move
The VIP culture is not limited to roads, but is prevalent on trains, airplanes and at airports as well. Approximately, 5 per cent of total berths and seats in trains are earmarked as emergency quota for union ministers, Supreme Court and High Court judges, MPs/MLAs and VIPs. To bring some respite, two years ago, the Railway Board had dropped former MPs, their relatives and companions from the list of those entitled for emergency quota for train travel. And of course, we might never catch a glimpse of a VIP waiting in a queue at the immigration counter in an airport. Some of them do not even make it on time for a scheduled flight. A major controversy erupted in 2015 when three passengers of an Air India Leh-Delhi flight were not allowed to board the plane at the last minute to accommodate Union minister of state for home affairs Kiren Rijiju, Jammu and Kashmir deputy chief minister Nirmal Singh and an aide. According to reports, the Indian government has been compiling a VIP list for easy US airport immigration. For starters, the list will have some 2,000 names, with plans to extend it to 15,000. God save us!
Shortcut to darshan
They don't spare the gods either. One might think all are equal before God, but in places of worship, too, VIPs and their acquaintances get assured darshans. All this while the common devotee has to wait in queue for hours, and still can't even manage to catch a good glimpse of his god. The Tirupati Balaji Temple, which is infamous for the huge proportion of 'VIP' darshans won accolades from the general public in 2015 for their decision to clamp down on the VIP privileges on the auspicious occasion of Vaikunta Ekadashi. Only 2,400 VIP passes were issued, a negligible number when compared to previous years, reports said.
