Hiccups on residents’ efforts, no shutters for this bar
For the residents of Rajajinagar 4th block, this bar and restaurant is a cause for public nuisance.
Bangalore: For the residents of Rajajinagar 4th block, this bar and restaurant is a cause for public nuisance and their two-decade long efforts to get it closed have failed. They allege that it is due to the political clout enjoyed by the bar owner.
The Athithi Bar & Restaurant is also located close to many medical and diagnostic centres. It has Rajajinagar Kidney Stone Centre on its left and a psychiatrist’s clinic on its right. In addition, there is a primary health care centre, run by the Rotary Club, which also has a dialysis centre, and a diabetic eye care and surgery centre located nearby.
Residents complain that every evening, especially during weekends, they have to contend with drunken brawls, broken liquor bottles littered on roads, eve-teasing and sometimes even accidents.
“It’s more of a residential locality and this bar is a disgrace. No women can walk through these roads during evenings” said B.G. Thammiah, an advocate and a resident of the area. “It’s harassment on a regular basis,” he added.
Residents allege that the building owner and the licence holder enjoy political clout. “Right from obtaining licence, getting no objection certificates, they had flouted norms and obtained them using political influence and money,” the advocate said.
In their latest efforts a 40-member group of residents had submitted a memorandum requesting the Excise Department for cancellation of licence or shifting the bar to a different location. The bar remained closed for a period of time and reopened again.
When Deccan Chronicle spoke to the bar owner, he said, he had sought extension regarding shifting of bar from the excise department, but he revealed that he is also planning to get a stay order from the court to continue his business.
