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‘No road, no vote’, declare new Gurugram sectors residents irked by toll
Around 150 residents of Gurugram’s sectors 79-113 have even changed their Twitter handle profile photograph to ‘no road, no vote’.
Residents of Gurugram’s new sectors, 79-113, have started a campaign ‘no road, no vote’, stating that if the government does not provide connectivity between the Northern Peripheral Road (NPR) and Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway, they will not vote for the ruling party in the upcoming assembly elections.
On Saturday, many residents, with posters of ‘no road, no vote’ pasted on their vehicles, were seen going around.
Mohammad Rizwan, one of the residents who came up with the campaign, said, “I had suggested this idea among residents — to start a campaign that if we don’t have road connectivity, we will not take part in elections. No politician or political party has come out to support us,” said Rizwan, a resident of Sector 81.
The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Rao Inderjit Singh, member of Parliament from Gurgaon, said, “We will resolve this issue at the earliest.”
Presently, around 60-65 residents have put up these stickers on their vehicles. Ravinder Rai, a resident of Sector 90, who has pasted this poster on his car, said, “The government is not supporting us. So, we had to take a decision on what we can do. We can’t live by paying the toll every day. Through this sticker, at least our message —that new sector residents need road connectivity to the Gurgaon-Delhi Expressway — will be read by the people.”
This campaign is set to pick up pace this weekend, as thousands of such stickers are going to be distributed to residents. Lokesh Yadav, a resident of Sector 93, said, “Presently, few residents have put up such stickers, they are doing it of their own accord.”
Shibashish Rudra, a resident of Sector 81, said, “This campaign will gather momentum this weekend, as more residents will be part of it. None of the residents are doing anything against the law; we are spreading the message on the importance of connecting the NPR to the expressway to us. It was made by our money on September 29 and was blocked by MCEPL, the toll plaza concessionaire, on October 1. If the authorities take our lifeline away, what is the point of participating in the elections?”
Around 150 residents have even changed their Twitter handle profile photograph to ‘no road, no vote’.
Aman Chawla, a resident of Sector 92, said, “Time for elections is near and we want everyone to hear our voice. Some of us have even changed our profile photo on Twitter handle with this message. If this connectivity is not provided by October 21, it’s clear that 30,000 voters are not going to vote. Our vote is not going for the present state government.”
Some residents say that they will not refrain from voting due to the issue. “I have decided this time that I will not cast my vote in the state assembly elections. We have been suffering daily, going past the Kherki Daula toll plaza, and the recent closure of connecting road. Despite many promises, the government has failed to resolve the toll issue in the last five years. Residents of new sectors are irritated by the daily routine of getting stuck in jams, wasting their time and energy at the toll plaza,” said Manoj Lakhani, a resident of Sector 90.
