AB Hotel in Sector 26 of Chandigarh where the altercatin broke out on Wednesday. (Express Photo by Jasbir Malhi)
A BAILIFF, deputed by a local court to empty Hotel AB’s, was locked up by its staff. The bailiff, Rajeev Kumar, was finally rescued when he made a call to the police control room through the owner of the building housing the hotel on Wednesday. Police have registered an FIR for illegally confining a government employee against Jatinder Kumar, the manager of Hotel AB’s, and other staff members at Sector 26 police station. Police have also begun investigation to verify the allegations of the accused Jatinder, who alleged that they had pulled down the shutters of the hotel because they were scared as many people were trying to enter the place with wrong intention.
The building, housing Hotel AB’s, a premium enterprise of Hot Millions, was owned by one Vijay Kumar Pahwa, who filed a civil case against the owner of the hotel in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, seeking recovery of rent. The matter was reached in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Akashdeep Mahajan when the owner of Hotel AB’s failed to comply with the instructions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and a contempt of court application was filed in the CJMs court by building owner Vijay Kumar Pahwa. All this began around 12.45 pm when the bailiff, accompanied by building owner Vijay Kumar Pahwa, his brother Vinod Kumar Pahwa, came to the hotel and the hotel staff members told them to talk with the AB’s owner, Mohanbir Singh.
“The hotel staff members called us inside the hotel and subsequently, staff members started going out of the hotel and at the last moment, they pulled down the shutter and locked the hotel from outside. We were confined in the hotel for more than half an hour and I made two calls to the police control room and a police force rushed arrived. Police broke the locks and rescued us,” said Vinod Pahwa.
Inspector Jaspal Singh, SHO of PS 26, said, “There was a civil case pending between two parties, including the building owner, Vijay Kumar Pahwa, and owner of AB’s, Mohanbir Singh. We rescued the bailiff, Rajeev Kumar, who was deputed by the district court. We booked the hotel manager, Jatinder Kumar, for illegally confining the bailiff and registered an FIR against him. Jatinder also lodged a complaint stating that the hotel staff members pulled down the shutter when they saw many labourers standing outside the hotel and they were all trying to enter the premises. We are verifying Jatinder’s complaint. Any arrest will be made after a thorough investigation.” A case was registered at Sector 26 PS.