Ask Uncle Ronnie

At a lot of public places, the police don’t seem to allow you to take pictures, especially if you look like a professional armed with a gadget bag and a tripod. Any tips on what we should do?

Nikhil Kumar, Mumbai

Let us first understand as to why the police don’t allow us to take photos at certain places or under certain situations.

One possible reason in today’s scenario could have to do with security. You could, for example, be taking pictures with an intention to pass that information to hostile elements. On the other hand, you may be interested in the architecture of the building that you are photographing.

But how are the police to know of your intentions? If there is a security issue, the police will be questioned (or even blamed). Hence it is safer for them to forbid you.

Another example could be of a law-and-order situation like controlling a mob. Police generally stop us from taking pictures for obvious reasons. Some photos could possibly be used to instigate violence or misrepresent what was actually happening. It is easy to trigger mob violence,