Guards, house owners object to parking by public

Mysore/Mysuru: Are the roads in front of apartment complexes and shopping outlets in prestigious areas and posh localities owned by the apartments? How can these apartment residents object to vehicles parked on the public roads? Are the roads a private property?

These are a few questions bothering commuters and vehicle owners as the security guards from these posh apartment complexes shoo away people who park on the roads in front of such buildings. These security guards use filthy language against the people who park, and even women and children are not spared.

Of late, many such complaints of abuse are being heard from people who park vehicles on public roads where there is enough space to park. Though the vehicles do not cause any disturbance to the residents of these apartments, vehicle owners who park their cars even for a short time face abuse from the security guards hired by the apartment residents and their associations.

The problem is particularly observed on Contour Road in Gokulam, the Main Road in Jayalakshmipuram and certain apartment complexes in these areas. Commuters have complained that, although these are well-planned areas with wide roads and ample parking space, certain apartment owners object to parking on the roads.

“The security guards hired by these apartment owners and residents’ associations use foul language and even threaten us with dire consequences if we park our vehicles on the road. These are not ‘No Parking’ areas. We understand if the Traffic Police have demarcated a particular zone as a no parking area, but these security guards and apartment owners consider the public roads as their private property,” said a motorist who was threatened by guards in Gokulam.

“As soon as we park our cars or two-wheelers on the roads, these security guards come running to tell us not to park. If we tell them it is a public road and a parking zone and we have a right to park, they resort to abuse and use intimidating language. Even women and children are not spared,” he added.

Commuters said that they, too, pay taxes to the Government and park their vehicles in vacant spaces on the road where parking is not banned, without causing any problems for the apartment owners and residents. Still, they are prevented from parking.

“The security guards must prevent thefts inside the apartments and unauthorised entries. These are their only duties. They must not bother about who is parking and where. This is not their job, and the apartment owners must instruct them not to poke their noses in public affairs. Apartments have no right to object to parking in a public place. If we park inside the apartment complexes, they have every right to object,” said another resident of the area who was also abused by security guards.

Commuters have appealed to the Police and the Mysuru City Corporation to intervene and prevent this public nuisance. “The law is equal to all, and these apartment residents are not beyond the law,” they said.

When Star of Mysore asked some apartment residents and the house owners, they spoke of the nuisance these vehicle users cause to them in many ways.

For example, one lady said that vehicles are parked in front of their gate blocking the free movement from and to their houses or apartments. These road-users park their vehicles in a haphazard way, many times causing traffic jam. Some in the night park their vehicles for amorous activities, they complained.

When the road-users do not use their “parking right” responsibly, only then they are threatened or shouted at. Regular Police beat on busy roads and business-cum-residential areas may help, they said.

It may be recalled that on June 2, a member of the public had parked his car obstructing the passage of a doctor’s car to his house which resulted in an argument and ended up in road rage where the doctor was assaulted and a Police complaint was lodged.