Celebrating 62 Years of Grovelling to VIPs

A lot of people in India are mad at America these days.

First, its former president Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam was frisked by Continental Airlines staff, in accordance with U.S. transportation department rules, before they allowed him to board a flight. Those arrogant American officials were ignorant that India's government exempts VIPs and their families from being subjected to any searches, even though India suffers one of the world’s highest rates of terrorist attacks.

And now, horror of horrors, movie star Shahrukh Khan was subjected to questions about his travel documents by customs and immigration officials in Newark. He was sent to a room for secondary questioning and had to wait in line for his turn, just like everyone else there. He was asked some more questions, and then he was out of there in a little over an hour.

Put yourself in the shoes of the U.S. immigration and customs officials that day in Newark. They are among the billions of people in the world who have been spared viewing Om Shanti Om and do not recognize Shahrukh Khan, much less intend disrespect to him.

The person standing before them has a surname that matches that of many on their terrorism watch lists. He bears a passport from a country where a disproportionately large number of travelers obtain visas through fraudulent documents and immigrate illegally to the United States. And quite possibly, this passenger does not have two little bags like most travelers. You don’t want to hold up the impatient passengers who are lined up behind Mr. Khan, so you ask him to go to another room where he can be questioned more privately.

Sounds like they were simply doing their job politely. Does this warrant burning effigies of U.S. President Barack Obama? Or having Ambika Soni, the national information minister, publicly recommend retaliation in the form of harassment for
American travelers? The information minister is ignorant. American travelers already find Indian airports nightmarish. They haven’t complained loudly because they don’t feel singled out for bad service; Indian officials treat all their customers equally poorly, regardless of nationality.

Racial profiling occurs in America. It occurs more frequently in India, and those who suffer it rarely have legal recourse to correct it. Ambika Soni only has to accompany Shahrukh Khan as he hunts for an apartment in Mumbai.

India is a democracy where some people are more equal than others. It is a place where legislators pass laws that subject ordinary citizens to inconveniences and indignities that the legislators and their powerful friends are exempted from.

India’s rich and powerful are so used to having everyone in government and society bowing and scraping before them and bending rules for them, that when they travel abroad, they are shocked when they are treated just like everybody else.

“Do you know WHO I am?” is a threat that works all the time in India, putting the fear of God in officials who are afraid the displeasure of a powerful person might cause them to lose their jobs or get demoted.

On the anniversary of 62 years of independence from colonial rule, Indian news headlines were squealing in protest because one of their darling VIPs was being treated just like anyone else.

Not an apt way to trumpet one’s achievements as a democracy. But certainly, lots of free publicity for Shahrukh Khan ahead of the release of his forthcoming film, My Name is Khan.