LAHORE, Oct 31: Samanabad, once a modern and peaceful locality of Lahore, has now become a safe haven for encroachers and criminals, making the life of the residents and visitors miserable.

Those who dare to complain against the encroachments are threatened by those who consider themselves above the law.

People are waylaid in the streets and are not safe even in their homes, and according to many residents, police still consider the law and order under control.

The main encroachers are the sellers of used cars, who even hold a Sunday Bazaar in Samnabad’s main market, creating a great deal of inconvenience for the residents and visitors alike.

The main market of the locality was meant for providing items of daily use to the people. The shops were constructed in an organized manner along the side lanes of the main boulevard having green belts as medians. The side lanes and the road were lined with trees and flower beds.

Now, everything has been encroached upon. The car sellers continue to occupy the side lanes, the green belts and even the main boulevard, making it impassable for motorists especially on Sundays.

The vendors in the middle of the boulevard block the entrance to the Baghdadi Road which leads to the core of the locality and the main playground.

The Ghazali Road, Pakki Thathi Road and Poonch Road, which are residential areas, have now been turned into commercial zones illegally. Shops have cropped up in front of homes and their owners blatantly encroach upon the footpaths and roads.

Fruit and vegetable sellers on donkey carts and bicycles are another menace in the locality like elsewhere in the city. One can find such sellers clustering any road.

Many residents complain that they had time and again approached the city administration for the redressal of this problem. But all the time the encroachers appeared to be more powerful than the hapless people.

“You know an encroacher who manages to tackle the government officials, becomes a threat for a complainant. In fact, complaining is a a big challenge which not many take for their own safety,” a resident said on the condition of anonymity.

Some other people complained of robberies and snatching of their valuable in the streets. This was rampant and police claim there was nothing to worry whenever a complaint was made, they said. —Intikhab Hanif