Chandigarh: 40 yrs on, HC orders opening of road outside Punjab CM’s house

As the road has official residences of both Punjab and Haryana chief ministers, police of both states, and Chandigarh had opposed the idea of opening the road, citing security concerns.

The Punjab and Haryana high court has ordered opening of the 500 m stretch outside Punjab chief minister’s residence, connecting Sukhna Lake to Nayagaon, on trial basis from May 1.

The court has also directed Chandigarh Police to engage traffic experts for preparing a traffic management plan for the road that will be opened from 7 am and 7 pm on working days for now.

The road was closed at the merger point of Uttar Marg-Vidya Path in the 1980s during the height of terrorism in Punjab. Consequently, for almost four decades, commuters moving between Nayagaon and Sukhna Lake were forced to take long detours via adjacent sectors.

As the road has official residences of both Punjab and Haryana chief ministers, police of both states, and Chandigarh had opposed the idea of opening the road, citing security concerns.

It was on November 23 last year that the high court, while dealing with infrastructure-related issues of Chandigarh, had observed that residents cannot be put to inconvenience on account of “alleged protected persons” and had directed that road closure be reconsidered.

As per the order, Chandigarh senior superintendent of police (SSP) Kanwardeep Kaur had filed a sealed-cover report and taken “great pains” to highlight the threat perception, while referring to incidents reported in Punjab where RPGs were used in attacks.

“Some examples have been given of the incident which happened in Tarn Taran, which is situated at a distance of about 230 km from Chandigarh…There is a green area of 100 feet between the road and the (Punjab) chief minister’s residence, but it is being put forth in the affidavit that it does not act as a buffer between the road and the chief minister’s residence,” the HC bench observed, adding that the concern, as per police, was that of a vehicle carrying heavy explosives approaching CM residence due to opening of the road.

It further said police also apprehended that the opening of the road will lead to huge vehicular flow, which in a way was an “admission” that the same vehicular flow had to use other routes and was not being given access to the Sukhna Lake road.

Terming the security agencies’ concerns as “figment of imagination” and further referring to a report of Haryana police, the court said it was apparent that as and when people had to come to their elected representatives to express their grievances that was also considered a threat perception.

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