NRI Iqbal Singh, who is presently on a visit to the city, said, “A few people are forcibly installing the gate, thus, not allowing us access to the public road. They have also erected a pillar in front of my house, resulting in a crack in the wall.”

Singh claims that even after lodging a complaint with the Model Town police station, the installation of the gate continued and no action has been initiated. The police, meanwhile, have also allegedly asked Singh to bring a written letter from the Municipal Corporation that public roads cannot be blocked with gates. It, however, needs to be mentioned that according to the MC Act, 1976, gates cannot be installed on public roads.

This is not the lone case. A few weeks ago, MC Commissioner G S Ghuman had ordered a gate to be removed in the Model House area calling it “illegal”. Rajesh Rudra, a resident of Model Town, who is getting the gate erected in the area said, “The whole association wants this gate to be installed as several incidents of chain snatching and petty thefts have been reported here. The police have asked us to take security measures on our own and hence we are erecting the gates.”