If you say that you’ve never been bribed, then I’d say you don’t exist. This is a bitter fact of the society we live in. Everyone has become so-called busy that they don’t want to WASTE time in waiting. They would rather PAY the bribe, which the opposite person obviously accepts with a glee, and get their jobs done.
Common incidents where you are sure of being bribed include
-Passport
-Driving licence
-Police verification
-Other official stuff.
Such incidents are too common to be described. All of you must have undergone being bribed at least once in your lifetime.
However, today I had decided to be the change which I wanted to see in the nation. I had awakened :)
Today was the day we had been waiting for. Not because we liked to visit a police station, but because our police verification procedure was pending since like ages. Today, our broker finally decided to spare time for us and get the job done.
When he finally came, we were ready with all the necessary documents. He asked us to give Rs. 100 per form. I got infuriated and asked him the reason for the same. He said that the police WILL ask for the money. However, I had decided to change, and change was THEN. I told him that I would like to go personally to the police station and he agreed. Two of my friends joined me in this (in the beginning).
We reached the police station. We waited for more than an hour to see the authorized person to get the work done. When he came, he directly asked us to pay Rs. 200 per form, which would amount to 1200 /- in total. Seeing the police, one of my friends chickened out, paid 800 Rs. and went home to REST. He paid 800 Rs. because; we have three chickens living with us, including him. A fourth friend wanted to join us but was caught up in some work, so he had to “pay the price “ !!
Let’s stop beating around the bush and come to the point as to what exactly happened there !!. The friend who was with me all this time was Arnav. He told me not to speak because , boy do I get angryyyyy at such stuff. He straightforwardly asked the person, ”Yeh paise jo ap mang rahe ho, ye official charges hai kya ?” ( Is the money you are asking from us , the official charges ? ). The person was so bewildered that he replied (inspite of the fact that we DID have all the official documents with us) ,” Yeh sab bhi official hai kya .. blahhh blahh” As you must have read, this sentence had no sense at all !!
Till then, he’d got the idea that we were not going to pay him a single penny and so he made us photocopy the documents which he had actually overlooked in the case of my friends who had paid the bribe. But, Arnav and I had decided to win. We ran, got the documents photocopied and threw those in his face. Then, when he signed on the stamp, I asked, “Sab ho gaya naa ?” (All’s done, rite ?). The officer was speechless. His face showed a clearcut sign of being too puzzled to believe that inspite of the fact that he expected us to pay the bribe, we weren’t going to.
The best part was that I stormed out without looking back, and Arnav followed suit.
Lo and behold !! We DID win :D
So, now you decide. If we could make a small difference, why can’t you all make a difference too? And just think, if all these differences add up? Won’t that make it a BIG difference? Just ponder over this. When I narrated this incident to my father, you know what he said? His words were. “You did a good job. Buck up. WE are corrupt. NOT them. They take because we give.”
Just stop paying fellows, the taking will stop too.
I do hope that you too make a difference. JAI HIND…
--Sanket Karkare
Date: 13th Sept 09
True incident !!
Common incidents where you are sure of being bribed include
-Passport
-Driving licence
-Police verification
-Other official stuff.
Such incidents are too common to be described. All of you must have undergone being bribed at least once in your lifetime.
However, today I had decided to be the change which I wanted to see in the nation. I had awakened :)
Today was the day we had been waiting for. Not because we liked to visit a police station, but because our police verification procedure was pending since like ages. Today, our broker finally decided to spare time for us and get the job done.
When he finally came, we were ready with all the necessary documents. He asked us to give Rs. 100 per form. I got infuriated and asked him the reason for the same. He said that the police WILL ask for the money. However, I had decided to change, and change was THEN. I told him that I would like to go personally to the police station and he agreed. Two of my friends joined me in this (in the beginning).
We reached the police station. We waited for more than an hour to see the authorized person to get the work done. When he came, he directly asked us to pay Rs. 200 per form, which would amount to 1200 /- in total. Seeing the police, one of my friends chickened out, paid 800 Rs. and went home to REST. He paid 800 Rs. because; we have three chickens living with us, including him. A fourth friend wanted to join us but was caught up in some work, so he had to “pay the price “ !!
Let’s stop beating around the bush and come to the point as to what exactly happened there !!. The friend who was with me all this time was Arnav. He told me not to speak because , boy do I get angryyyyy at such stuff. He straightforwardly asked the person, ”Yeh paise jo ap mang rahe ho, ye official charges hai kya ?” ( Is the money you are asking from us , the official charges ? ). The person was so bewildered that he replied (inspite of the fact that we DID have all the official documents with us) ,” Yeh sab bhi official hai kya .. blahhh blahh” As you must have read, this sentence had no sense at all !!
Till then, he’d got the idea that we were not going to pay him a single penny and so he made us photocopy the documents which he had actually overlooked in the case of my friends who had paid the bribe. But, Arnav and I had decided to win. We ran, got the documents photocopied and threw those in his face. Then, when he signed on the stamp, I asked, “Sab ho gaya naa ?” (All’s done, rite ?). The officer was speechless. His face showed a clearcut sign of being too puzzled to believe that inspite of the fact that he expected us to pay the bribe, we weren’t going to.
The best part was that I stormed out without looking back, and Arnav followed suit.
Lo and behold !! We DID win :D
So, now you decide. If we could make a small difference, why can’t you all make a difference too? And just think, if all these differences add up? Won’t that make it a BIG difference? Just ponder over this. When I narrated this incident to my father, you know what he said? His words were. “You did a good job. Buck up. WE are corrupt. NOT them. They take because we give.”
Just stop paying fellows, the taking will stop too.
I do hope that you too make a difference. JAI HIND…
--Sanket Karkare
Date: 13th Sept 09
True incident !!
