Tow away: Illegal parking lots near Jail Road give rise to security risks

Several govt installations are clustered around the area, including Police Lines, PHC, Civil Secretariat.

PESHAWAR:

Illegal parking on Saddar Road, also known as Jail Road, is becoming a concern for authorities as it poses a security threat to several sensitive areas close by.

The presence of several government offices – including Civil Secretariat, Police Lines, Governor House – also means more cars need to be parked but with no official lot to be parked in. From Suri Pul right across to the Peshawar Central Jail, footpaths are regularly being used to provide parking space – illegally – for the public.

According to munshi Irfan Khan, at any given time, almost 300 vehicles cover the parking area outside Peshawar High Court (PHC), also located in the same hub. Most lawyers, litigants, and others visiting the judicial complex park their vehicles on both sides of Jail Road, said Irfan. Each vehicle is charged Rs20 for the day.

Khalid Khan, who was visiting from Charsadda for a case at the PHC, said he reached the area at 8am in the morning. Khalid believed the traffic he encountered at the time was caused by illegal parking.

With an ineffective traffic policing system and the delay in constructing the Mufti Mehmood flyover, Khalid argued illegal parking only made things worse.

Traffic Headquarters DSP Asghar Marwat told The Express Tribune the department is planning to take action against illegal parking in the city. Marwat claimed the police learnt of a gang of influential people which is allegedly involved in operating unlawful parking businesses, dotting the city from Peshawar’s entry point to University, Charsadda and Warsak roads.

A similar observation was made by the PHC on September 9, when a bench headed by the chief justice was hearing a suo motu notice on illegal parking. “Officials of the police, the local government authority and transport department seem to be associated with these gangs, and seem unable to take any action against these elements,” PHC Chief Justice Dost Muhammad Khan had observed.



He added the issuance of no-objection certificates (NOC) from government departments, including the Peshawar Development Authority, to parking contractors is illegal and action will be taken against all those who hold such illegal NOCs. The Traffic Police Ordinance 1965, Section 253, Act 2 states a no-objection certificate can only be issued by the traffic police.

In the hearing, the PHC had summoned the capital city police officer, AIG traffic, secretary transport, commissioner and deputy commissioner to explain why they failed in stopping the illegal car parking business in the city.

According to DSP Marwat, the police have tabled the issue with the High Court Bar Peshawar president as well and are trying to reach a solution within the next few days. “Most lawyers leave their cars in illegal parking spaces,” around the Jail Road area.

Action has also been taken against an illegal taxi stand at the Cantonment board, shared Marwat, adding contractors were also arrested. Under a new policy, parking contractors have to apply for car parking spaces and terminals via the Regional Transport Authority.

On January 17, a division bench of PHC expressed concerns that the provincial capital was the only city where flyovers are being built inside the metropolitan areas. “The government did not consult international experts and constructed flyovers in the city which are now causing severe traffic jams,” it remarked. “If a Ring-Railway is set up from Ring Road, it will reduce the traffic burden,” it added.

On November 6, a two-member bench comprising CJ Dost Muhammad Khan and Justice Musarrat Hilali directed Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief minister to form a commission to probe possible security risks that may arise due to the construction of Mufti Mehmood Flyover after the directives given by the court on May 5, ordering the K-P chief secretary to form a commission for the purpose, were not complied with.

In the past, attacks have been made at the PHC and Pearl Continental Hotel, and security threat is increasing due to the illegal parking spaces.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 15^th, 2013.