DCP catches South Mumbai's parking touts red-handed

Cops had been keeping a watch on the parking lot in Crawford Market after receiving complaints. FILE PIC

Zone I's deputy commissioner of police, Manoj Kumar Sharma, has started on the right path to deliver on his promise, as well as that of the chief minister and the police commissioner - cracking down on the "mafia" of parking touts that has taken over Crawford Market.

Also read: CM Devendra Fadnavis asks cops to probe Mumbai's most expensive parking lot at Crawford Market

Sharma, under whose charge the Azad Maidan police had been keeping a watch on the parking lot, arrested two touts on Friday after watching a scuffle between one of them and two motorists, who were being overcharged.

The Azad Maidan police have booked five people in all, including the owner and manager of RT Corporation, which has the contract to collect parking fees, for allegedly overcharging motorists and not issuing receipts either.

Lid blown open
Several complaints have been filed in the past on this illegal collection of money from motorists. mid-day had reported about one such complaint filed by a Thane resident, G Arora.

Though the BMC has set a rate of Rs 60/hour for parking lots, contractors have been charging motorists anything between Rs 100 and Rs 150.

On Friday around 5.30 pm, the police noticed a scuffle between a man and two motorists. They reached the spot; Sharma, who was passing by, too, stopped and joined the party.

When he asked what the matter was, motorists Bhavesh Jain (34) and Amit Sheth (38) told him that the person was asking for R100 for an hour's parking and Rs 250 for four.

When Sharma asked the man, identified as Mukhtar Ahmed Gaffar Sheikh (44), why he was overcharging, Mukhtar replied, "The contract to collect parking charges is given to RT Corporation, and they have told me to collect R100 for an hour." Sharma ordered the officers to detain Mukhtar and interrogate him.

"Inquiry revealed that these people were not issuing receipts to motorists either, just handing out pink slips," said a policeman. "We also found out that they would threaten motorists with damage to the vehicle, or at times even theft, if they didn't cough up the asked amount."

Taking action
Sharma said, "We were keeping an eye on the parking lot, from where complaints of harassment of motorists had come in. On Friday, we saw it happen and immediately took action. We have booked five people in all." The Azad Maidan police have registered an offence against Mukhtar, Bismilla Sheikh alias Raja, one identified as Rais, and the owner and manager of RT Corporation under IPC sections 465 (punishment for forgery), 466 (forgery of public register), 471 (using forged document as genuine), 384 (extortion) and 34 (common intention). So far, Mukhtar and Bismilla have been arrested. They were produced in holiday court yesterday, which sent them to police custody.