Mumbai police reminded Bollywood actor Uday Chopra Saturday that marijuana is a banned commodity in India when the "Dhoom" actor batted for its legalisation.
Chopra tweeted Friday that marijuana, also known as cannabis, should be legalised as it is "part of Indian culture" and also has "medical benefits".
The tweet not only invited usual trolling that celebrities sometimes face on social media, but also a response from the city police.
"Sir, as citizen of India, you are privileged to express your view on a public platform. Be mindful, as of now consumption, possession and transportation of marijuana invites harsh punishment as per provisions of Narcotic Drug and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985. Spread the word," said Mumbai Police.
Advertisement
By Saturday afternoon, Chopra's post had over 300 retweets, a thousand `likes' and many comments, many of them countering his view or using `memes' to ridicule it.
"People here can't use WhatsApp correctly and you are talking about marijuana...," said one tweet.
But the actor stuck to his guns.
"The benefits are too many to list. A brief google search will educate you I am sure. Anyway its better than being schooled by people like me who have no work," he said.
"I do not use it, I just really think its a wise move, given our history with the (cannabis) plant," he said in another tweet.
Advertisement
Twitter user @IshataYadav said it was easu for Chopra to say so as he doesn't "have to work for living"
To which Chopra replied wonderinhg why the same argument didn't stop "alcohol to be legalised".
PTI
