PANJIM: Abhishek Sawant of Mumbai did not have a ‘joy ride’ during his holiday in Goa. He and his group of friends rented two-wheelers to ride along the State’s roads, but the treatment they received from the men-in-uniform manning the roads and highways, is described by them as harassment.
“As Goa does not have proper public transport like other states, all tourists coming down have to either rent a bike or car. Seeing the yellow number plate Goa Traffic Police immediately stopped the vehicle for no reason, even when we have all necessary documents and have followed all traffic rules,” Sawant said.
His is not an isolated case. Tourists who visit Goa have been taking back bad memories of their unwarranted brush with the law enforcement authorities – the traffic police. Tourists claim only rented bikes with the yellow number plate are stopped and not a single Goan two-wheeler is stopped even if the rider isn’t wearing a helmet.
“I visit Goa once a year, but I always take back bad memories of run-ins with traffic cops. They stop us for no reason. Why do they stop us? Just because we are outsiders and not Goa residents or they just want to extract money from tourist,” said Pratik Jain, a resident of Jharkhand.
Herald was able to confirm their stories when our team rode on NH 17 at Porvorim and saw traffic cops immediately stop Indian as well as foreign tourists riding on rented bikes with yellow number plates even if the rider was wearing a helmet. Not a single Goan bike was stopped, even if traffic rules, such as rider not wearing a helmet, were violated.
As traffic cops noticed photographs were being clicked, they followed the Herald team and asked that the photos be deleted, they also sought to know what photographs had been clicked. They, however, admitted that a majority of the vehicles they stop are tourist bikes.
“We go by the offence committed, whether it is done by a local or an outsider, the law is the same for everyone. The traffic police stop the commuters for various reasons and accordingly check for necessary documents. It’s not only the tourists, even locals are stopped by the cops. It’s just not that the tourist are stopped for not wearing a helmet, there are various other traffic violations, besides not wearing helmets,” Dharmesh Angle, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Traffic Cell, said.
