An Honest...wait for it...Traffic Cop

No pun intended! No inherent contradictions here! I actually had a run-in with an honest traffic cop in Mumbai last week and i feel blessed! Here is how it all transpired

Driving through Amar Mahal junction near Ghatkopar, i was one of the tiny few who try to and succeed in getting through the junction before the blink and you miss it green signal turns red again. And in the rush (for absolutely no reason, i was just dropping a friend home) to get past it, i did not realize the light turn red again just as i crossed the line from safety into combat zone and was caught by the ever-present traffic cop standing there expecting exactly this waiting to wave me to the side of the road.

It was thus with trepidation that i stepped out of the car, bracing myself for a show of abject poverty to lower the bribe to manageable levels when the cop, expectedly asked me to hand over my licence.

I was expecting the usual charade of "ill have to impound your licence and charge you with a fine of a few million rupees (never heard this figure below 500) and you can collect it later after paying the fine" followed by my pleading that it was an honest mistake and let me go for a tenth of that sum going straight into your pocket.

The cop did exactly that except that instead of mentioning an absurd figure, he quoted the princely sum of Rs 100/- to be paid as fine and asked me to collect the licence in a couple of days from the nearest traffic outpost (on my route from home to work for that week). I was first shocked to hear the amount and my initial reaction was that he seems to be in a screwy mode where he will say Rs 100 but i will be asked to cough up a much bigger amount at the traffic chowk. So i offered to pay him the Rs 100/- and give me my licence back (i know i am also to blame....he wont take a bribe if you wont offer one...blah blah), which he refused and impounded my licence and gave me a receipt instead.

A couple of days later, i made my way to the outpost expecting to pay anywhere between Rs 100 and 500 and was again shocked when all i had to do was pay the Rs 100 to a bored looking person and get my licence back. The whole process took less than a minute!!

Once again, am pleasantly surprised with this encounter and also more knowledgeable in that no cop can now ask me for exorbitant fines for violating a signal. To all those who may read this and drive in Mumbai, if you are ever caught by a traffic cop for breaking a red light, offer him your licence and ask him where to collect it from after a few days. It is definitely the more convenient and morally satisfying option!