India: Let's Jail Miss Universe for Taj Mahal Photo Shoot

Olivia Culpo shot a shoe commercial there
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Oct 11, 2013 3:30 PM CDT
India: Let's Jail Miss Universe for Taj Mahal Photo Shoot
In this Sept. 30, 2013 photo, Miss Universe Olivia Culpo of the US watches a performance by inmates as designer Sanjana Jon, adjusts her veil during a visit to the Tihar Jail in New Delhi, India.   (Tsering Topgyal)

Indian police have filed a case against Miss Universe, American Olivia Culpo, for an unauthorized fashion shoot at the Taj Mahal, India's white-marble monument to love, a police officer said today. Police Inspector Sushant Gaur said Culpo and others in her group are accused of violating India's Heritage Act. Culpo, from Cranston, Rhode Island, was on a 10-day visit to India; Gaur says she shot a commercial for footwear at the Taj Mahal on Sunday without the permission of the state-run Archaeological Survey of India.

Indian media said commercial activity is banned on the premises of the Taj Mahal, a World Heritage Site. Police acted on a complaint received from the ASI today, Gaur said. If found guilty, they can be jailed for up to two years and fined $1,600. Indian police file a case as a first step in investigating a complaint. They formally charge a suspect in court at the end of the investigation. Culpo left India on Sunday night. Speaking to the Providence Journal, she expressed regret over the photo shoot. "Honestly, I did say out loud at one point, 'Isn't this a little inappropriate?'" Culpo said. (Read more Olivia Culpo stories.)

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