Protest in Srinagar: Corporator accused of demanding bribe for ‘car parking’ extension*
Srinagar, Oct 3: Contractors who were allotted car parking contract at Makai Park on the banks of world famed Dal Lake by Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) Saturday alleged that Corporator Brein Nishat in order to extend their car parking contract demanded bribe from them.
“For the extension of contract up to the period of 6 months, Corporator Auqib Renzu demanded Rs 3 lakh and for a year, he demanded Rs 6 lakh from us. We refused to pay the bribe as we have suffered immensely due to prevailing circumstances,” the contractors told news agencies during a protest here in Press Enclave Srinagar.
The contractors including Javaid Ahmed and Nazir Ahmed said that they obtained the Makai Park, ‘Car Parking’ contract on 27th July 2019 for Rs 11 lakh. Within a week of securing the contract, situation turned from bad to worse on account of abrogation of special status of Jammu and Kashmir. After that Covid-19 pandemic hit Valley. We suffered losses and had no alternative but to request Commissioner SMC to extend our contract. On humanitarian grounds, the Commissioner obliged.”
They said before meeting the Commissioner, Corporator Auqub Renzu contacted them and demanded bribe for the extension.
“Instead of greasing the palm of the Corporator, we approached the Commissioner SMC. We begged before him and he obliged on humanitarian grounds. We are in possession of ‘recording’, Renzu demanding bribe from us for the extension of the parking tender,” they said and lamented that they had lot of expectations from the said Corporator but when he failed to extract money from them, he came up with a cock and bull story accusing us of bribing SMC Commissioner for extension of car parking contract, which is absolutely erroneous.