Demolishing myths about begging

Begging is considered a legitimate form of economic activity by poor people with disabilities, who are neglected by state institutions that fail to reintegrate them with the larger society

In August 2018, Delhi High Court passed a remarkable judgment that held several clauses of the anti-begging law unconstitutional. However, begging continues to be a practice that is approached with ambiguity, if not outright disdain. Begging is still a crime in at least 20 other Indian states and Union Territories. 

One of the more sympathetic views on begging is that it is a communal activity reminiscent of religious almsgiving. I have worked with begging communities in Delhi and Mumbai since 2010. In the course of my study, I have found that begging in its very urban manifestations is largely a secular