Man gets into scuffle with cop at Noida border, held

NOIDA: A 34-year-old Noida resident driving back from Delhi was arrested at the DND Flyway earlier this week after he allegedly got into a scuffle with a sub-inspector, who had asked to see his pass and told him to return to Delhi when he said he didn’t have one.
For weeks now, arguments between cops and commuters at the sealed Noida-Delhi border have been breaking out routinely. As jams have become longer and more frequent because of the increase in traffic with offices and businesses opening up, tempers have been rising steadily as well.
On Tuesday evening, one argument swiftly escalated. The Noida resident, who lives Jaypee Greens Kosmos, told police he was “frustrated” and “extremely angry” after being caught in the traffic mess at the border. He was driving back home in his white Volkswagen Polo when the cops stopped him at the DND checkpost around 7.20pm.
“A constable asked him to show a pass issued by the Noida administration. But he did not have any. The man got into an argument, insisting that he should be allowed to enter the city where he lives. He was asked to park his car by the side of the road. I had started the process of seizing his vehicle when he tried to manhandle me,” said sub-inspector Sunil Yadav.
Rakesh Kumar Singh, the SHO of Sector 20 police station, said the man had been booked under sections 188 (disobedience of order promulgated by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life), 352 (punishment for assault or criminal force) and other sections of IPC as well as clauses of the Disaster Management Act and the Epidemic Act.
Originally from Uttarakhand, he has a house each in Delhi and Noida. His wife declined to comment, saying the family was trying to “forget what had happened”.
The Noida administration imposed curbs at its borders with Delhi in April, citing an increasing number of Covid cases with their source in the national capital. Over the past few weeks, traffic volume between the two cities has risen substantially, leading to jams at the border every day.
As a result, arguments with cops have become a regular feature, with many commuters saying that their inability to reach their workplace in Delhi for days at a stretch was putting their livelihoods in jeopardy. Movement has become tougher for private firm employees ever since the Delhi government, earlier this week, began insisting on passes to enter the capital. On Sunday, a video of at least five commuters arguing with cops on the DND Flyway went viral on social media. This regular bickering is also leading to massive snarls at Kalindi Kunj and other entry/exit points during rush hours.
On Friday, too, the line of vehicles stretched several kilometres at the border with Delhi. Cops relaxed the checking for some time when the traffic volume built up on the DND Flyway.