30 booked for getting authorities to construct village road at gunpoint in Gurugram
While police said Hoshiar Singh, the former chairman of block samiti, initiated the fracas so he could get a road constructed in front of a petrol pump he owns, Singh refuted the allegation and said all villagers wanted a road constructed at the spot because over 20 mishaps had taken place there
Police on Tuesday booked 30 residents of Naurangpur village, including a former chairman of block samiti, for allegedly obstructing the construction work of a master dividing road in Sector 78/79, threatening workers and officials of Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) at gunpoint, and forcing them to construct a patch of road overnight in the village.
While police said Hoshiar Singh, the former chairman of block samiti, initiated the fracas so he could get a road constructed in front of a petrol pump he owns, Singh refuted the allegation and said all villagers wanted a road constructed at the spot because over 20 mishaps had taken place there in the last couple of months and all their pleas to the authorities to reconstruct the road had fallen on deaf ears.
According to a complaint filed by a sub-divisional officer of GMDA, the team was working to construct a road in Sector 78/79 on Tuesday. “A private contractor, a team of GMDA and workers were on the site when at least 30 villagers came and started abusing the staff members. They assaulted the workers and held the team at gunpoint. They took away three machines and construction material and forced them to lay a 50-metre patch of road in front of a petrol pump on Tauru road,” said the complainant, requesting anonymity.
The complainant alleged that the suspects were armed with weapons and sticks and manhandled the team. “The tender was already allotted and a private contractor was completing the work. But the miscreants visited the spot and forcefully took them to another site that was not listed under the tender and got a road constructed there,” he said.
A senior GMDA official said that when the matter came to their notice, they took prompt action and lodged a police complaint against the villagers. “GMDA does not tolerate such actions--interfering with the government projects and manhandling the staff members while on duty. Strict action has been initiated by the police,” he said.
Police said they registered a case under sections 148 (riots), 149 (unlawful assembly), 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 323 (causing hurt), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 427 (causing damage) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of Indian Penal Code at Kherki Daula police station on Tuesday.
Rajender Singh, station house officer of Kherki Daula police station, said that they are conducting an investigation and raids to arrest the suspects.
“One of the suspects, identified as Hoshiar Singh, forcefully got a road constructed in front of a petrol pump he owns. He held all the staff members and workers of a private contractor at gunpoint to complete the task. The villagers accompanied him and assaulted the team members who were working on Tuesday,” he said.
Singh, meanwhile, said they had to resort to such tactics, because, despite several reminders, the GMDA officials were not paying any heed to their requests to reconstruct the stretch. “At least 20 accidents took place in the last two months on the stretch. The entire stretch is potholed and waterlogged throughout the year. We met all the officials, and gave written complaints, but nothing was done. We all decided to get together and get the repair work done,” he said.
Singh said that even if they are arrested, at least villagers can now safely travel on the stretch. “This is no crime to save lives of our people. Many small children have also suffered injuries and the entire stretch is not my personal property, it is used by the villagers,” he said.
GMDA officials, however, said that they had not received any complaints from the villagers regarding the potholed road.
