Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other Indian BJP ministers will boycott cars with red beacon lights (lalbatti) starting from May 1.
In recent meetings, the Prime Minister had reportedly been emphatic about ending ‘lal batti culture’ that has come to symbolize VIP arrogance at the cost of public convenience.
Impressively, Narendra Modi’s car moved in normal traffic when he recently reached the Delhi Airport to receive the Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. This clearly implies that PM Modi has earnestly and wholly boycotted the VIP treatment for himself. He has also additionally ensured that all other ministers are not treated as privilege members because of a red beacon.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley also said that there are no exceptions to this rule. “Blue lights, used often for the car preceding VIPs, will be allowed only for emergency vehicles,” he said.
Nitin Gadkari also informed that only emergency vehicles will be able to use blue beacons. Gadkari too has removed lal-batti from his car.
“This government is a government of common masses and has decided to abolish VIP culture of beacon lights and sirens,” Mr Gadkari claimed.
This decision is a result of an ambulance video going viral on social platforms last year. The video demonstrated a wounded child suffering due to the VIP culture prevalent in India. As policemen had deployed barricades to obstruct traffic flow and ensure seamless travel for the top notch VIP’s.
The video instigated BJP officials to pioneer this culture in India to hamper the VIP culture which has enveloped BJP officials. In the video, police had stopped traffic flow for general public inclduign ambulances as a visiting dignitary’s convoy was passing through in the capital city.
As a matter of fact, a court suggested to restrict the use of red beacons and sirens which has now finally been manifested by BJP supremos.
