Call it organized crime or connived lawlessness, the act of unilaterally grabbing about 1.6 acres of prime land on Maulana Azad Link Road in Srinagar speaks much more than what meets the eye. Abut 50 taxi drivers got the Srinagar Development Authority land bull dozed in the night of 24-25 August and put up the signboard of Taxi Stand over a land that costs about 100 crore rupees. Some sources believe that the gang of drivers would not summon such audacity as to undertake this blatant act of vandalism if they had not been enjoying covert support of some of the political stalwarts. That is a common line of thinking in Srinagar these days.
The act of illegal grabbing of Srinagar Development Authority land at a prestigious site cannot be condoned and overlooked. It is a crime and will have to be dealt with in accordance with the law. Moreover as the intended taxi stand poses threat to the adjoining residential quarters of the central and state ministers, the law has to come into motion to take care of the development. But apart from this, there is another dimension of the issue.
Srinagar is not only the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir; it is also the capital city to which thousands of tourists come summer after summer. We have often said that the present Srinagar city is not fit to be considered a tourist city. It is like a primitive village grown haphazardly along the banks of the Jhelum. It has no characteristics of a modern city because it was never laid out except for one or two localities laid out by the former Chief Minister Bakhshi Ghulam Muhammad. Almost same is the condition with Jammu city. We have said that the twin city of Srinagar should come up in the proximity of the old city.
Efficient transport is an essential component of tourism among other components. That means roads and avenues should be wide and at least of four-lanes; there should be adequate parking space available to private owners of cars and taxis. Multi-storey parking slots have to be provided for decongestion, recreational and children’s parks are to be laid out and so many other pre-requisites have to be met with. Why has not the Srinagar Development Authority provided adequate parking slots to taxi drivers who are essential part of tourism in the State? Sources inform that the taxi drivers’ union had been making frantic appeals to the Government for providing them parking space but their appeals fell on deaf ears. In such circumstances, where the bread earner is pushed to the wall, reaction is bound to take place. We are not absolving the land grabbers/taxi drivers of an illegal act cognizable under law. They will have to bear the brunt of violating law and order. But even after punishing or chastising them, the original question will continue to haunt the Srinagar Development Authority. The question where to park the vehicles has to be decided. Srinagar Development Authority should have dealt with the issue long back and if it has already identified the site and raised the infrastructure, they the taxi drivers had no right to resort to illegal action.
We do not accept the plea that the SDA and the police have failed to evacuate the illegal occupation. Since the SDA and the police both have expressed their inability to force the rule of law, does it mean that lawlessness will prevail and the state will pass into the hands of looters, land grabbers and goons? When Government means business, eviction will take half an hour. But when there are vested interests, Government brings in a plethora of pretexts. It is now for those who claim to give the people clean administration and good governance to decide what action they would take against those who have indulged in an act of lawlessness and highhandedness.
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