Bangalore:
After the High Court passed an order that threw open to the public a road controlled by the Army for years, there are allegations by Bangalore residents that military men dressed in civilian clothes are now terrorising them.
S Shashidhar, secretary of Modi Garden Residents' Welfare Association, said his son was attacked by armymen in mufti on the road in question, and that a complaint was registered
with the JC Nagar and DJ Halli police station soon after the incident.
The residents' body says the incident of violence is a fresh army tactic aimed at showing the road is unsafe if it does not remain in the hands of its Parachute Regiment Training Centre (PRTC).
"When my son Sanketh went out with his friends Manjunath and Rahul around 8 pm, army officers in civilian dress tried to attack the boys. Luckily, they escaped," said Shashidhar.
"After the complaint was filed with the DJ Halli and JC Nagar police, they promised to deploy policemen in mufti there. The police will also undertake night patrolling to protect the general public."
Residents say that despite the High Court order, the PRTC was trying to get back the road under one pretext or the other. They say the army is angry because the court order had gone in favour of petitioner A P Suresh and wanted to show that the road was unsafe to build its case for an appeal in the courts.
The approach road connecting JC Nagar, Anjaneya Temple, Modi Garden, Lancer Masjid and Kawalbyrasandra was closed on March 10, 2003, ostensibly for repairs. People approached the High Court, and on March 23, 2003, an interim order was passed to keep the road open.
Residents said the north-end road (Modi Garden to Lancer Masjid and Kawalbyrasandra) was also closed by the Army on January 23, 2010, citing security for Republic Day celebrations.
"It has become very difficult for us residents of Modi Garden to step out of our own homes.
The army doesn't allow us to enter our layout," said Shashidhar. "There are no lights in the area and ladies can't step out. The army is supposed to protect the public but here it has become reverse."
The road used to be a city bus route over a decade ago, said residents. They said the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation stopped plying buses on it in 1994 because of army restrictions.
In 2003 the army prevented even private vehicles from on this road.