From marathons to motorcycle rides, the city is seeing a surge in outdoor and recreational activities. But on Sunday, a national-level motorcycle rally championship — that had permission to be held — near the outskirts of the city, met with resistance from a police team that claimed that a portion of the event took place on land that came under a separate jurisdiction.
Event organisers say they’re used to such incidents cropping up at the last minute, but what stood out at this event was the fact that a police inspector physically and verbally abused the rally’s organiser.
Anoop Pamu, who organises similar motorsport-events, says that prior permissions rarely make their events immune to police interference. He says, “We have our track days regularly, so the local cops are informed that we’re organising these events and a lot of bikers will attend it. But on the way, cops who stop us make a huge deal about it, saying they won’t recognise the permission of the police station.”
Narrating one such incident during a ride to Singur they had organised, Anoop says, “We had the Hyderabad commissionerate’s permission and a signed letter from the DGP saying that we’re allowed to conduct the ride. But on the way back, we were stopped by the police, who said we were racing. They refused to listen to us, nor check the written permission we had from the DGP, and put us in the lock-up.”
Runners in the city, too, say organising even weekly runs can be a hassle, with groups of more than 30 being questioned for permissions. An organiser from the Hyderabad Runners group says, “Once we get the permission from the police, their support is amazing. But we need to have a separate policy for recreational activities, which also addresses the issues of safety and security.”
However, Hyderabad Bicycling Club chairman D.V. Manohar says that permissions for their events, which they ask for a couple of weeks in advance, are granted without issues. “We can’t be compared with motorcycling, but we have not faced any issues,” he says.
Dr Murali Nannapaneni, race director of the Hyderabad Marathon, thinks that the situation is getting better, “Initially, we were faced with complaints about them being overtaxed and overburdened with too many events. But now, the police’s understanding of these events is getting better.
