[landcruiser123]

I honestly think the officer's wife gave him an earful that morning and he took the anger out on you. If you resisted, he would have asked you for a "coffee charge" to buy her a gift/meal.

Honestly, as long as stickers don't obstruct visibility, portray obscenity or reflect glare in a dangerous manner, I should be allowed to paste them on my car. I've seen multiple artists, architects, and college deans paste the stickers advertising for their business. Wonder what is wrong in pasting a T-BHP sticker you paid money for?

[Turbanator]

I recently went for a new car registration to MV inspection office at chandigarh. There were a large number of 15 year old personal cars that were being inspected before renewal of fitness is issued and the common observation was strict adherence to the original specifications / features to the car.

Many people were sent back to get alloys removed as is the fashion in North. As per MV inspector, most of the cars at that time had steel rims and the market alloys don’t conform to original passing norms. Same way, paint has to be in good shape with no rust and everything like indicators, headlamps, horns, rear view mirrors have to be in working order. Interiors too have to be in reasonable condition.

I won’t read much into OP case relating to the legality, it’s more to do with adherence to the original specification only.

[avira_tk]

Originally Posted by hserus

Online has worked very well for me the past two times (changed two cars in 2018) and even before that with the old manual forms submitting it yourself always worked if you were aware of the procedure.

That's good to know, but doesn't apply when there are any complications. A simple mistake /technicality can put you in the back of the queue. This is more so when you're not local or renting.

[Marshall]

Originally Posted by bskumar

I took my Alto today for renewal of registration at Ernakulam RTO on completion of 15 years. I had Team-BHP stickers on the windshield and on the front bonnet and rear. Windshield and Bonnet stickers were teambhp.com (the old one which i purchased some 5 to 6 years back). The rear one was Live to Drive with teambhp.com written vertical on the left side.
What is the actual legal angle in this case?

Originally Posted by landcruiser123

I honestly think the officer's wife gave him an earful that morning and he took the anger out on you. If you resisted, he would have asked you for a "coffee charge" to buy her a gift/meal.

Honestly, as long as stickers don't obstruct visibility, portray obscenity or reflect glare in a dangerous manner, I should be allowed to paste them on my car. I've seen multiple artists, architects, and college deans paste the stickers advertising for their business. Wonder what is wrong in pasting a T-BHP sticker you paid money for?

There's no point arguing and wasting your time for such trivial reasons. Glad you chose to close it out immediately.

The Malayalam movie 'Driving license' is great and true and thats how it works to a great extent.

[MSC]

This is unrelated to Kerla state but something similar. Experienced something similar in the north. That too in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh where the police is somewhat linient in comparison to traffic police in comparison to their counterparts in Chandigarh or Delhi.
I am a doctor and like is the usual norm, my car had a doctor logo on the windscreen and rear glass. The car also had hospital parking pass as well as old college time student pass stickered. For for the first time ever I was asked to remove the doctor sticker on the spot to escape 2500 fine. I was literally shocked. I usually never argue with cops but after some poking I got to know that the Highcourt has passed some order which prohibits stickers related to designation, profession, rank or caste. Being from noble profession and covid times, the cops just gave me liberty to remove on the spot and go without any fine. It was useless to argue with cops and had to remove it.
Shimla being state capital and having lot of state government cars, couple of cars passed which had HP Govt, HP Secretariat, along with other cars with stickers ranging from advocates and CAs and others. When I asked will you ask them to remove as well, the cops just ignored and flagged another doctor to remove his sticker.
It's useless to argue them. It's best to get your job done and vanish from the spot.

[RedTerrano]

Originally Posted by bskumar

The MVI who inspected my vehicle said that such advertisement stickers of Team BHP are considered as advertisements and need to pay advertisement fee, if it is to be stuck on the vehicle.... I had actually purchased the sticker on payment and it is not an advertisement.

They way I understand it, advertisement is when you earn money to put up stickers. In reality like you correctly pointed out, you spent money to put the stickers.

But then this is India and the nuisance value of authorities is not worth your time. IMO you did the right thing by getting your work done with the minimal hassle.

[Liverpool]

This goes on to show what can cheap pleasures can get. He was being a bully. He can only do that much. Besides I am sure his team-bhp application was surely rejected.

AFAIK it is not illegal to put stickers on your privately owned vehicles. It’s your property. As long as you’re not breaking the rules it shouldn’t be a problem.

[jeeva]

Well, Kerala has been notorious in the recent times for coming up with their own version of established rules and norms; be it Supreme court judgements or the CMVR. Its all just a ploy to suck money out from its citizens.

If its about advertisements, then none of the KSRTC buses should ply on the roads. They have banners stuck all over the buses. What about the MVD's own department vehicles? They too have huge stickers covering the entire bonnet and the sides.

[frewper]

Originally Posted by bskumar

The MVI who inspected my vehicle said that such advertisement stickers of Team BHP are considered as advertisements and need to pay advertisement fee, if it is to be stuck on the vehicle. Or, it should be removed or else fitness will not be given.

We are all forgetting one thing. The entire incident is not about the sticker. Its about the MVI getting his oppotunity to play his high handedness.

How on earth did he conclude that it is an advertisement sticker. The OP does not benefit financially by placing the sticker on this windshield, then how is that advertisement? Tbhp sticker in this essense denotes but being a part of a club and nothing else. Ohh then suddenly there is an advertisement fee the OP can pay for all this to go away? Lets read between the lines.

The TBhp sticker is no different from the sticker of a housing society we place on the windshield. Is the MVI gonna say that even that is an advertisement sticker of the housing society?

Let the MVI give it writing that the Tbhp sticker is an advertisement sticker, which he will never do, because he knows there is no such thing. He will be digging his own grave if he does that.

You have two options,
1. Get rid of the sticker, pass your test and put a new one. (5-6 yr old sticker must have faded any ways).
2. Grease his palms a little, because that is what he actually meant by advertisement fee, which I thing you misunderstood.

I would suggest better spend the money to buy TBhp stickers that grease a corrupt officers palm.

[swiftnfurious]

Kerala MVDs are ALWAYS overboard. They need to have failure cases during license test drives and since they cant touch the candidates who come via agents, the axe is always on those who come without one.

When my dad went to the RTO directly to register a brand new car, they rejected the engine number impression he took, twice, stating it wasnt legible. The second time my dad asked "You tell me what am I supposed to do for you; I'll do directly and WILL not engage an agent at any cost". He immediately signed the papers after murmuring something.

If you really want to take the fight, I suggest writing a RTI asking for details on dealership stickers / team-bhp stickers. They'll take 2 weeks (max time) to revert. If it were me, I'll take off the sticker, do fitness test and sport another one after FC is done.

[anoop.u]

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Kerala MVDs are ALWAYS overboard. They need to have failure cases during license test drives and since they cant touch the candidates who come via agents, the axe is always on those who come without one ...

Can vouch for this personally, went to get my license done in February 2020, after getting my learners in December 2019. I was the last person to take the H-ground test as I was the only one there with own vehicle and without an agent.

After finishing the H-ground test, the officer claims that he cannot clear me as I reversed the car 2 meters less than prescribed.

I have been driving for 15+ years in India (with a valid license), and on that very day i saw people who barely knew how to move the car without riding the clutch get a license only because they were backed by agent. Pissed me off to a great extent but I left it at that because if I picked a fight that might have resulted in the officer holding a grudge against me when I went back for my 2nd attempt (yet to happen, thanks to COVID).

[VLPBLR]

Originally Posted by avira_tk

This is just a reaction to not using an agent, from my personal experience I'll never go directly to the RTO for anything.

The driving school I spoke to about hypothecation removal said he could have got my papers in 3 days. I spent 9 months and multiple visits to just get the rc back. There's still some other paperwork left.

I have had very good experiences with Bangalore RTOs - Koramangala and Indiranagar over the last several years. Most recent was getting the company leased car transferred to my name including removal of hypothecation and transfer from Indira Nagar to Koramangala. Just 2 visits with all documentation (thanks to a BHPian's post which helped me put all document together one time - sorry I don't recall whose post it was), once to IndiraNagar RTO and once to Koramangala RTO and I got the new RC card in my name. A similar transaction about 10 years ago was equally smooth (that was before the online facility was available).

[one-77]

It’s instances like this that make people seek the help of middle-men (“agents”) to get things done at Government offices in India.
In the end most feel it’s better to pay a certain amount as “commission” than have to deal with the filthy officialdom and red tape and make one’s blood boil.
That’s just the price of peace of mind in India.

[SouravS]

If this were to be true, there were so many other instances which could be classified as advertising - whether it is a parking sticker with the name of the society or maybe even a Fastag sticker with the name of the service provider printed on it! Doesn't make sense to me at all.

[Sankar]

Someone not in the know would think, Oh wow! Kerala RTO guys are very strict on vehicle fitness and presentation and wouldn't let an unworthy vehicle pass when under their watch! But as everyone else in the know would know this is not the truth and is applicable only to people doing it the right way. I know of two vehicles which passed fitness in the recent past which are not worthy to be on the roads - bald tyres, dents, poor mechanicals. Of course it was done with local influence not using agents and the owner is proud about the fact that the vehicle got FC through influence.