Brief respite as police open road near Shaheen Bagh

Whoever closed it again has to answer SC, says interlocutor

February 22, 2020 02:02 am | Updated 02:02 am IST - NEW DELHI

A view of the Noida-Delhi road closed due to Shaheen Bagh protests.

A view of the Noida-Delhi road closed due to Shaheen Bagh protests.

A road near the Shaheen Bagh protest site that connects Noida to Faridabad via Delhi was reopened briefly on Friday afternoon to ease traffic congestion but closed after around 40 minutes.

A senior police officer said it was nothing out of the ordinary, rather a standard practice of the Uttar Pradesh and Delhi Police to overcome traffic congestion. Only two-wheelers and light motor vehicles were allowed to pass through during the time the barricades were removed.

“U.P. police had opened the barricades to allow entry of light motor vehicles travelling from Noida to Faridabad via a road adjoining a canal. They had asked the Delhi police to open the barricades for a few minutes as they witnessed major congestion due to high traffic volumes during the afternoon,” said the officer.

The officer added that Madanpur Khadar road, the one adjoining the canal, is narrow and cannot handle a heavy traffic load, which is why the police only allowed a certain number of light motor vehicles to use the path. Only motorists travelling to Faridabad were allowed to cross the barricades.

“If we allow all vehicles to pass through, then there will be confusion and chaos as many motorists travelling to different parts of south Delhi from Noida may also enter the road adjoining the canal,” the officer said.

‘Got orders from above’

A Delhi traffic policeman who closed the barricades said he got the orders from his seniors and refused to comment beyond that.

Supreme Court-appointed interlocutors Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran had personally gone to inspect all the roads connecting Delhi to Noida late on Thursday along with some protesters and policemen.

“We went to see all the roads from Noida with police and volunteers. We found that a lot of what you said is true. We asked the police to open the Noida-Faridabad road. They agreed and opened the road this morning. I am very upset to say that the road was again closed. Whoever did it will have to explain it to the Supreme Court,” said Ms. Ramachandran.

(With inputs from PTI)

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