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The vacant plot of land on Ashu Bose Lane. Picture by Gopal Senapati
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As dusk descends on Ashu Bose Lane in Tikiapara, the area turns into a haven for drug peddlers and gamblers. A vacant plot of land belonging to Howrah Improvement Trust (HIT) with boundary wall on all four sides provides a perfect setting for the drug peddlers, giving them necessary cover from the public eye. For the last few months, satta bookies have been seen openly distributing slips against money to players in broad daylight.
On January 2, Fakiruddin Ahmed and Riaz Ahmed, both residents of Hara Chand Mukherjee Lane, were beaten up by the bookies for protesting against gambling. “The bookies left in the face of protest but came back within a couple of hours and beat up Riaz Ahmed’s brother, Kamaruddin, with an iron rod. He had to be admitted to the Howrah hospital with head injury,” said Fakiruddin Ahmed.
Besides, the miscreants ransacked some houses to spread panic among residents. Local residents alleged that a gang of miscreants led by Asdat, Saheb, Chunna and Rashid run the gambling and drug peddling racket in the area but police turns a blind eye.
The peddlers have breached the wall at several places around the vacant land where the action shifts at night. The holes have been made to allow entry into the enclosure. “The place is ideal for illegal activities because on one side there is a rail track and on another there is East-West Road. Most of the breaches on the wall are on the side of the rail track. It is impossible for people to notice them from the road,” said a local resident. Besides creepers and bushes also give them the necessary cover. Most of the local residents claimed that the Howrah police was well aware of the racket in the area but they refuse to do anything as they get paid regularly.
“The dak babus (plainclothes policemen) from Howrah police station regularly visit the drug peddlers and the satta dons for collecting money. A police patrol party is often seen on East-West Road near the den. But despite repeated appeals, they never conduct a raid there,” said Mohammad Munir, a local resident. He said that residents have sought the help of the local councillor too but to no avail.
When contacted, Pranati Pakira, councillor, ward 22 of Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC), said, “The mushrooming jhupris along the East-West Road and rail track have turned the area into a haven for anti-social activities. Unless these are removed, nothing can be done.”
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