New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday
directed the city police chief to conduct an inquiry into an
alleged nexus between police officials and illegal parking
mafia and sought appropriate action against the culprits.
Issuing notices to the police as well as Delhi
government, the court sought responses from them on a PIL
alleging a contractor illegally occupying DDA land and
charging exorbitant parking fee from the general public in a
commercial place in Outer Delhi.
A division bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice
Sanjiv Khanna directed the Commissioner of Police to conduct
the inquiry and take action as per the law.
"Any nexus of this kind between the police and parking
mafia will not be allowed. It is the obligation of the police
to curb the menace....".
The bench fixed May 4 as the next date of hearing the
matter.
Filing the PIL through advocate R K Singh, petitioner
Shamsher Kaushik alleged a parking contractor Narender Kumar
Sharma has illegally encroached the car parking area of
Mangalam Commercial plaza in Rohini area in connivance with
the local police and charged exorbitant parking fee from the
visitors.
According to the petitioner, Sharma was given the
contract for scooter parking but he illegally encroached the
adjacent area meant for free parking of four wheelers and the
contractor charged parking fee.
"The parking areas in Delhi are also a breeding ground
for all kinds of criminal activities and if law enforcement
agencies are taking over the parking areas and running the
them, it will be a heavy blow to the criminal justice," the
petitioner said seeking an inquiry into the illegal nexus
between the police and the local goons and registration of FIR
against the culprits.
"Any one who dared to complain was threatened by the
police personnel who were always present there to protect the
contractor and his goons. Wholehearted efforts by harassed
citizens who dared to make representations were also turned
out to be futile because of highhandedness shown by the police
despite sincere effort by the DDA," the petitioner said.
There is a revenue loss to the tune of lakhs to the
government due to such illegal activities, Kaushik said.
PTI
