Seamier side of Meena Bazaar

By Lalit K. Jha

NEW DELHI, DEC. 24. The magnificent Red Fort faces a security threat of a different kind. The bustling Meena Bazaar near its entrance from the Lahore Gate side, frequented by thousands of tourists daily, has emerged as a centre of anti-social activities.

While the handicrafts, jewellery and other items of arts and craft continue to register brisk sale, there are reports of exchange of smuggled goods and even sale of fire arms from the premises which has about a few dozen shops on both side of the road leading to Naubat Khana from where one enters the Diwan-e- Aam.

This is not all. According to highly placed sources, many shopkeepers have even dug up caveats in the wall and created basements by digging its very foundation.

``This not only poses a danger to the building, but also a grave security threat considering the fact that it is very near to the ramparts of the Fort from where the Prime Minister hoists the national flag every August 15,'' sources said.

And with these shops changing ownership several times, no one knows who its real operators are. ``The fact that over the past few years, movement of separatists have increased in this market has raised many eyebrows,'' sources said, adding the investigating agencies strongly suspected that the fire arms used by militants on Friday night might have been first sneaked into the Fort campus through the Bazaar and kept for quite some time in one of the shops.

It is learnt that during the search operation, security forces recovered at least one magazine from near the vicinity of the Meena Bazaar complex. It is understood that over the past few years, several intelligence agencies have recommended to the Government either to close these shops or hand them over to some Government agencies for security reasons.

According to senior Government officials, serious thought was being given to the rationale of having such a market inside the complex, which had emerged more of a nuisance value. ``The kind of people who operate from here certainly do not augur well for the safety and security of the monument. They are more or less tout shops and a conduit for smuggling,'' a senior ASI official charged.

``I cannot say whether these shops should be removed or closed down. But a serious re-think needs to be done on the way they have been operating,'' argues Mr. O.P. Jain, convener of the Delhi Chapter of the Indian National Trust of Art and Cultural Heritage.

``Even if these shops are to remain here, there should be proper regulation and monitoring of their activities. This should be developed as a proper heritage market,'' he said. ``In no way should it be allowed to continue in its present form, which not only gives a bad name to the country courtesy the touts, but can also pose a security threat to the monument.''

According to Mr. Jain, Meena Bazaar has a glorious history, as once the shops were allotted by the Mughal emperors themselves, and the market basically catered to the basic needs of the residents of the Fort. ``But now it is in a mess giving bad name to the country.''

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