The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : The `Tiger menace'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jul 24, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

The `Tiger menace'

CONFRONTATIONS BETWEEN the public and the police over towing away of vehicles are common in Bangalore. The highest number of traffic-related cases booked by the police pertain to parking of vehicles in violation of the rules.

Today, the parking problem is not limited to the busy central and business areas of the city but has spread to residential localities because of the increase in the number of vehicles.

Many residential localities are old revenue areas with narrow roads and small houses which do not have open spaces for parking vehicles. Therefore, vehicles, mainly two-wheelers, are parked in front of the houses, and are often taken away by the police on the ground that they obstruct traffic. However, no one seems to have a solution to the problem, which is worsening, partly owing to the absence of `no-parking' signboards in residential areas.

Unfair action?

The traffic police have often come under attack from different quarters for towing away vehicles "without sufficient reason." In one case, a software engineer had parked his motorcycle in a parking lot at Jayanagar managed by a Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) contractor. He was issued a ticket by the parking lot attendant. However, when he returned to the parking area after an hour, he was shocked to find that his vehicle was "missing." Enquiries revealed that his motorcycle had been taken away by the police. The police told him that he had parked the vehicle in a no-parking zone.

When he showed them the ticket issued by the BMP contractor, the police informed him that he had not parked the vehicle "according to the rules within the permitted area." Many others have had a similar experience.

A major allegation against the police is that they tow away vehicles to "make a quick buck" or to achieve the target of number of cases registered. Another allegation is that they do not take adequate care of the four-wheelers they tow away using a vehicle known as "Tiger." If the cars and other vehicles are damaged, the police do not pay any compensation. Moreover, there is no system by which the public can know which police station they should approach to get back their vehicle.

Though there are certain rules that govern parking of vehicles in a parking lot, mainly those related to double or parallel parking, people are not aware of them. Lack of awareness has been contributing to the public-police confrontation.

Senior police officials say that people often feel offended when they are asked to remove their vehicles, or vehicles are towed away by the police for traffic-rule violations.

`Take a short walk'

"Everyone wants parking space near their place of work or business. If no parking place is available nearby, they park vehicles in prohibited areas," the police say. People should park their vehicles in permitted areas, though it may be at a distance from their place of work or business, senior officials say.

About the damage caused to vehicles during towing, the police say that the law makes no mention of payment of compensation. They claim that they take care to see that no damage is caused to the vehicles.

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