'Restrict them from foreign trips': IPS officer's tough message for Indians behaving badly abroad

The videos have been hard to ignore, Indians dancing on airport tarmacs in Vietnam, causing scenes in supermarkets in the US, or travelling in groups that locals find overwhelming. Now, a senior police officer is saying out loud what many have been thinking: this is starting to cost everyone.

The post that sparked a conversation

IPS officer Arun Bothra, currently serving as Additional DGP, CID-Crime & Transport Commissioner, Odisha, took to X to call out the pattern. "People whose behaviour abroad brings a bad name to the country should face some consequences. In serious cases, restrictions on foreign travel for some years can also be considered," he wrote.

Bothra was clear that the concern wasn't about optics. "Having an Indian passport is not just a right. It also comes with the responsibility to respect local laws, behave properly in public, and protect the country's image," he said.

Thailand is the warning shot

When another user pushed back, arguing Indians shouldn't care what foreigners think, Bothra sharpened his point. The real issue, he said, wasn't perception; it was policy.

"No, I am not worried about what foreigners think of the uncivilised and uncouth behaviour of some of us. What worries me more is that because of such behaviour, visa rules are getting tougher for all Indians. Thailand is a recent example," he wrote.

Thailand's Cabinet approved revised visa measures on May 19, moving India out of its visa-exemption regime and into the Visa on Arrival category, walking back a policy Indians had enjoyed since 2024. The rollback is part of a broader Thai government review tied to security and immigration concerns.

The reel that nobody asked for

Bothra didn't mince words on what the stakes look like in practice. "I just don't want people in host countries to look at us nervously, wondering which one of us will suddenly start dancing in a supermarket to make a reel," he said.

Beyond the viral clips, social media has seen a steady stream of accounts describing Indian tourist groups talking loudly, crowding spaces, and, in some cases, shoplifting. Bothra's post has reignited a debate about individual conduct and its collective consequences, at a time when the numbers travelling abroad have never been higher.