As posts on Holi flooded Twitter on Tuesday, Delhi Police's witty response to a tweet by food aggregator Zomato reminding people not to drive under the influence of intoxicants like bhang left many amused.
Bhang, mixed in drinks and sweets, is consumed on Holi, which will be celebrated on Wednesday. Bhang was exempted from the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act's classification as a "drug" in 1985 for cultural and social purposes. It all began with Zomato joking about a customer asking it to deliver bhang. "Someone please tell shubham from gurgaon we don't deliver bhaang ki goli. He has asked us 14 times," the food aggregator tweeted at 10:35 am. The tweet, which has over 87,000 views, also caught the attention of Delhi Police, which used it to remind people to celebrate Holi responsibly. Responding to Zomato's post at 11:06 am, Delhi Police tweeted, "If anyone meets Shubham.... Tell him not to drive if he consumes Bhaang." Delhi Police's tweet, which had garnered over 64,000 views by 3:50 pm, left netizens in splits, with many appreciating the wit in the comments. “Epic reply,” wrote a Twitter user. “Noted,” joked another person with the same name as mentioned in the tweets. “Don't worry, we'll make sure to leaf him a note,” posted another.
Another user posted, “Someone tell Zomato, deliver free gujiya this time instead of high delivery charges so many times”. Another user wrote, “He must have tweeted after drinking cannabis. Since when did Zomato start giving cannabis? Meanwhile, officials said special teams of Delhi Traffic Police along with PCR will be stationed at various city roads to check drunken driving and traffic rule violations on Holi.
Elaborate arrangements have been made to ensure the safety of motorists and pedestrians in Delhi, smooth traffic flow and prevent rash driving or stunts on two-wheelers, the police officials said.
According to an advisory issued by Delhi Police, special teams comprising 2,033 officers will be deployed at 287 major intersections and 233 vulnerable points on Holi. "Action shall also be initiated against registered owners of vehicles whose vehicles are found to be driven by minors/unauthorised persons, performing stunts, driving without a license, etc," advisory stated.
Swiggy removes egg ad
New Delhi: Swiggy's egg ad billboard for Holi has been taken down after a section of people expressed "outrage" on social media. The advertisement said, "Omelette - Sunny side-up - Kisi ke sarr par. #BuraMatKhelo. Get Holi essentials on Instamart."
Though there is no official statement from Swiggy on the matter. The billboard ads were only in Delhi-NCR and have been taken down now." Soon after the ad was put up, several people tweeted with the hashtag "HinduphobicSwiggy", urging people to boycott the food and grocery delivery service provider. All India Sadhu Samaj member and former president of the Kutch Sant Samaj wrote, "Hey @swiggy, it's not okay to give selective gyan on Hindu festivals. Your Holi reel and Billboard is creating a wrong perception about Holi. You must apologize and take steps to promote cultural inclusivity.
"VHP leader Sadhvi Prachi also objected as she wrote, "Hey Swiggy, why don't you give similar gyan on Eid/Christmas? Afraid of Sar Tan Se Juda gang? Since you serve diverse communities, it's important for you to learn to respect all religions. Remove your Holi ads."
While former president of Gujarat's Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, Hardik Bhavsar said, "Immediately Uninstalled", former BJP MLA from Uttar Pradesh Arun Kumar Yadav wrote, "By promoting controversial billboards and posting reel, #HinduPhobicSwiggy has hurt the sentiments of millions of people. Swiggy must apologize to Hindu community and remove them immediately, or face consequences. Why is their lack of similar Ads during non Hindu festivals?"