Navi Mumbai activist lives in fear after authorities reveal her identity

Illegal street hawkers in the area; (right) Cars parked illegally in the area

An activist who has been speaking out against unauthorised hawkers and illegal parking along the inner roads of Vashi, which is causing congestion and traffic snarls, has been publicly named by the authorities as the person complaining against "anti-social elements". This is extremely concerning as the authorities, instead of taking action against the illegalities, have put her life at risk.

Madhu Shankar, a Vashi-based social activist in her early 40s, had already been facing backlash from the hawkers who had even started targeting her. While she received some local support, the situation has taken a disturbing turn after authorities, including the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) and traffic police named her publicly.

Madhu Shankar, activist

The sociology graduate moved from Mumbai to Vashi in Navi Mumbai in 2006. As an activist, she has raised several social issues in the past, related to youth, child safety, traffic and illegal hawkers. "I found a number of illegal hawkers in my locality. I also got to know that deserving hawkers don't get licences and so many are forced to do business illegally. Some of them are genuine while others have a criminal mindset. When I raised this issue, I faced their anger and sadly, no resident came forward to support me. They were either too scared or wanted everything delivered to their doorstep, irrespective of whether the person was an illegal hawker or had a criminal mindset. I didn't get any support despite making several complaints," she said.

According to Madhu, she also filed an RTI query with the NMMC authorities regarding how many hawkers are legal and what action has been taken against the others. "The reply from the authorities was not related to my query. They responded saying they took action against a hawker who had hacked a tree. The action was against just this one hawker. Instead of taking action, they have made me famous among the hawkers who now identify me by face and even salute me mockingly while I'm walking to the market or back home," she said.

Speaking about the illegal parking issue, Madhu said, "Recently, I saw a man parking his car in the narrow lanes of Sector 29 (Vashi) and he was arguing with a sweeper from NMMC as she requested him to move the car since she was unable to sweep the road properly. She faced the issues regularly due to cars parked haphazardly. I knew how residents complained about sweepers if they were unable to sweep the road properly so I requested the man to cooperate like other car owners, but instead he started asking about my identity.

Being a woman and an alert citizen of India, it was very humiliating for me publicly. One lady came in support of that man and shouted at me stating that I had also been complaining about all the 'poor hawkers' and so she couldn't conveniently buy fruits and vegetables from them anymore. I tried to make her understand that I am not against the hawkers and have written several letters to the NMMC to give licenses to the deserving hawkers after a proper background check," she said, adding that proper verification can stop chain snatching incidents and other crimes in Sectors 28 and 29.

Madhu says when she had complained against illegal hawkers a few months ago, they planned a mob attack on her but she called the police and got a complaint registered. "Other residents didn't come forward as they were too scared and told me not to complain as they (illegal hawkers) are dangerous. I still did what my heart said was right in protecting my society. I keep all pieces of evidence and hence they couldn't harm me even with their political connections."

Madhu says she also informed the traffic department about the man who had parked his car haphazardly and then argued with her and the NMMC sweeper. The traffic police informed her that a challan had been issued to the man for traffic violations. "However, the next day, Senior Police Inspector Dileep Gujar of the traffic department told me that it's not wrong for outsiders to park cars in residential areas. He tried to intimidate me saying the car owner would drag me to court filing a false complaint against him. I then informed Tirupati Kakre, head of the traffic department in Navi Mumbai, who apologised and assured me that action would be taken," she added.

Madhu had even written a complaint to the Navi Mumbai police commissioner regarding the no action from the traffic police but hasn't received any response. "This incident highlights the need for greater transparency and accountability in governance. It's essential that the authorities take concrete action to address the issue of congestion and traffic snarls caused by hawkers and illegal parking, rather than targeting individuals who are trying to bring about change," said Madhu.

"I hope that the authorities take immediate action to address this situation and ensure that a woman's safety is guaranteed," she added. An official from NMMC said, "We regularly take action against hawkers. Usually, seeing the official vehicle, the hawkers ran away. Our officials frequently visit to see that the city roads are clear from hawkers and traffic snarls, and not just after complaints are made."