The first settlement was the MLA flats in Sectors 3 and 4 and the only market worth its name was the Sector-22 market. Things have certainly changed now. Instead of the Kaku Shah halwai shop, we have the Swiss Pie in its place. The whole city seems to be on the move 24X7.

Earlier, Chandigarh was a sleepy town. The city has now grown into a tricity-Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula.

There were times the Chief Minister of Punjab Partap Singh Kairon and Chief Justice of the Punjab High Court Justice Falshaw could informally walk into our house for a cup of coffee without security or invitation.

As children, the only crime we heard of was petty thefts. It was often said that there would be no theft if there had been no police stations in the area. Then, the nexus was limited to thefts only; how times have changed!

Today, there is strong evidence to prove that the local police are involved in drug and narcotics dealings. Drug trafficking carries on unabated because of the strong nexus between the drug mafia and the police. The police siding with one party in property disputes is common.

It is nearly impossible to get an FIR registered in a police station. However, if you have the right connection and the means, the same can be registered on flimsy grounds. The latest case which has come to light is of a police officer sexually assaulting a youth. The boy had left home after a fight with his parents and was wandering on the streets when the cop found him. Later, the police officer dropped the boy at his house. Is this how our protectors are supposed to behave?

But all such ‘men in uniform’ have a saviour — the UT Administration. Whenever a police officer is accused of a serious crime, the whole government machinery gets going to save him — every department is manipulated and managed.