Clubs, bars on Gurugram’s MG Road to ask details of visitors

A three-member committee with suggestions from police, MG Road bar association and the excise department has finalised 10 rules for patrons of pubs, clubs and bars in malls on MG Road.

Patrons wishing to enter pubs, bars and clubs in malls on MG Road will now have to give their name, date of birth, cellphone number and address to security guards at the entrance. Police said the entry data of visitors will have to be submitted once a week at the local police station, where officers will maintain the data, including the club they visited, either digitally or manually.

A committee was formed by the Gurugram district administration in December last year to suggest steps to keep MG Road free of sex trade, peddlers and maintain law and order. (HT File)

This is one of the 10 rules finalised on January 16 with suggestions from police, MG Road bar association and the excise department, that are a part of the report submitted by the three-member committee before the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday.

The committee was formed by the district administration in December last year to suggest steps to keep the 2km-stretch free of sex trade, peddlers and maintain law and order on the Mall Mile that’s surrounded by residential colonies and is home to at least 18 clubs and restaurants popular with the party crowd.

The committee has also directed that each mall build a separate entry and exit for club-goers; bar smoking inside clubs and pubs except for a designated area; ensure these establishments are well-lit and that they install night vision CCTV cameras inside and outside the clubs.

Violation of any of these guidelines can lead to revocation of no-objection-certificate (NOC) granted by the police, the committee report has recommended.

A copy of this letter will be sent to all bars and clubs on MG Road on Tuesday, the police said.

“Once they receive the letter, they will be given enough time to implement the recommended changes. After that, we will monitor their activities to check if they have implemented the order. A report will be submitted to the committee fortnightly,” assistant commissioner of police (DLF) Karan Goyal said.

The committee has also decided that in future if complaints of brawl or illegal activities are received against any bar or club, the committee may recommend the withdrawal of their NOC and excise licence. “The committee can review its order of imposing these additional conditions on said clubs and bars after observing their implementation for two months,” said Goyal.

Patrons remained apprehensive of the new rules and said they were concerned about their privacy, especially since giving their home address was mandatory.

Sushant Lok-1 resident Ashok Bakshi said he would stop visiting clubs on MG Road if such a rule is enforced. “Why should I share my details with the club staff? I just go there to have couple of drinks and to enjoy. I don’t want anyone spying on me,” Bakshi said.

Vinod Tayal, a resident of DLF Phase 2, agreed with Bakshi. “This is a strange guideline asking the visitors to reveal their personal details. How can one trust the staff members of these pubs and bars that they will not misuse these details? This will hamper their business and people will stop going there.”

While the police officers said they were required to implement these rules till the committee reviews its order, MG Road residents said nothing much has changed despite so many raids and crackdowns since July last year. Some residents said that initially things did change for the better, but slowly it was business as usual.

“Our intention is not to get the pubs closed but to check illegal activities sprouting from there and spreading to residential colonies in and around MG Road and other parts of Gurugram. The situation has improved, but requires more stringent action,” former president Essel Towers RWA Rajeev Sinha said.

The police had last year in July, withdrawn the no-objection certificates issued to 10 of the 15 nightclubs on MG Road to ensure law and order, after residents complained that sex trade was thriving on the stretch.

The need to form these guidelines arose after the police, on July 29 last year, withdrew no-objection certificates (NOCs) issued to 10 out of 15 nightclubs here as residents complained of open solicitation on the stretch. The entrepreneurs then took the matter to the high court, which stayed the suspension but directed the police to submit suggestions to check immoral activities and dismissed the club owners’ petition challenging police action. The court also allowed the Gurugram police to conduct random inspection of clubs to maintain law and order.

The NOCs were withdrawn after clubs shut shop on July 4 in protest of raids and sought new guidelines for operations. Club owners on MG road alleged that repeated raids by the police over the last few days have led to harassment and problems for them and their guests.