What’s the ‘Golmaal’, Shetty? ‘Police’ tags, lights on private cars are illegal

Filmmaker Rohit Shetty is under scrutiny over splashing the word lsquoPolicersquo and fitting policestyle lights on at least two of his private cars both Indianmade sports utility vehicles SUVs Shetty 52 has directed some of the Hindi movie industryrsquos biggest hits of the past two decades including the Singham trilogy Chennai Express and the Golmaal franchise the fifth of which is currently being shot in the cityBoth these acts are illegal and subject to punishment under Section 177 of the Motor Vehicles Act of 1988 as amended in 2019 No vehicles apart from those belonging to law enforcement are allowed to use theseRohit Shettyrsquos convoy with the police sticker and other embellishments passes through an area in Mumbai for a shoot last week PicNimesh Davemidday has photographs of both the SUVs and traffic officials confirmed that they belong to ShettyVehicle details as listed with the RTO PicBy Special ArrangementPolice officials told midday on condition of anonymity that Shetty had not received the level of police security he had sought One officer said ldquoHis request is still under considerationrdquoNo response from policemidday reached out repeatedly to the top brass of Mumbai Police including Commissioner Deven Bharti Joint Commissioners Satyanarayan Choudhary Law amp Order and Anil Kumbhare Traffic a senior official from the Security and Protection department of the DCP of Operations and the Mumbai Police public relations officer PRO No one responded until 1030 pm on Tuesday the time of this newspaper going to printFilmmakers spokesperson issues statementHowever by Wednesday afternoon Shettyrsquos Spokesperson issued an official statement stating that the stickers have now been ldquodiscontinuedrdquoThe statement read ldquoFollowing the firing incident at Rohit Shettyrsquos residence the police had implemented heightened security measures and provided protection Identification stickers were placed during the initial phase which have now been discontinued At present Rohit Shetty continues to remain under police security with two personnel deployed for his safety as the matter remains under active surveillance We extend our sincere appreciation to the Mumbai Police for their steadfast support and cooperation during this challenging periodrdquoThe wellregarded filmmaker and television show host was at the receiving end of extortion threats earlier this year and a firing incident was reported outside his residence in the early hours of February 1 According to the police the Bishnoi gang has claimed responsibility for the February 1 shooting as wellA couple of weeks after the firing incident Shetty wrote to Mumbai Police Commissioner Deven Bharti asking for enhanced protection for himself and for the cast and crew of his upcoming movie Golmaal 5 which is currently being shot in Mumbai The moviersquos actors include Akshay Kumar Ajay Devgn Shreyas Talpade Arshad Warsi and Tusshar KapoorRohit Shettyrsquos convoy passes through a suburban area in Mumbai for a shoot last week PicsNimesh DaveLegal implicationsA senior traffic officer said ldquoWriting lsquoPOLICErsquo on private vehicles or using police lights is illegal Only official police vehicles are permittedrdquo Records accessed by officers of the Regional Transport Office RTO reveal that both SUVs in question are registered in Shettyrsquos own name not the police department A senior RTO official said ldquoUnder the Motor Vehicles Act 1988 as amended in 2019 displaying a ldquoPolicerdquo sticker logo or board on a private vehicle is a punishable offence under Section 177 This section serves as the general provision for punishing traffic violations where a specific penalty is not stipulated elsewhererdquo An RTO inspector told midday ldquoWhenever such cases are brought to our notice we alert the local policerdquoActivist respondsRight to Information Act activist Anil Galgali who has exposed civic officials using police sirens told midday that the use of ldquoPOLICErdquo markings unauthorised name plates and illegal flashing lights are all serious violations of the law and ldquoa matter of grave public concernrdquo He said ldquoSuch actions create a false impression of authority mislead citizens and undermine law enforcement agenciesrsquo credibilityrdquo He demanded that an FIR be registered against Shetty ldquoA highlevel inquiry must be initiated to ascertain under whose permission negligence or possible complicity such misuse has been allowed Clear and strict guidelines must also be issuedrdquo Galgali said