Ggn: Planning a booze session in the car with pals? Don't even think about it

People drinking in cars parked in public places used to be a common sight in Gurgaon. However, following an incident in which a bunch of "sophisticated" people spent a night behind bars, such "open parties" have become a rarity. 

Members of several RWAs from across the city had met the police to lodge a complaint against drinking in public places.

"We often spotted people sitting and drinking near our market," said Rajkumar Yadav, president of Sector 46. "Confronting them about the issue always ended up in a tiff. And who has the patience to quarrel with drunk men? We thought it best to take the matter to the police." 

Many residents have faced similar situations. They said it was tough taking their wives and children to the market in the evenings, as there would invariably be some group or the other huddled inside cars, drinking.

"Our colony women brought the matter to our notice," said Vinod Tayal, an RWA member of DLF Phase II.

DS Yadav, president of the Sector 17 RWA, said the liquor shop barely 50 m from their main gate was often chock-a-block with parked vehicles and people drinking inside. "Since our complaint to the police, the PCR van has been doing frequent rounds of the area," he added.

The city's police has, in fact, formed special teams to keep an eye out for people drinking in cars. They frequent liquor shops to keep a check on the problem. "We will not allow drinking in public places," said Deepak Saharan, DCP (East). "It is wrong to drink at a place where other people can get offended."

With police taking the matter seriously, there has been a sharp fall in the number of people drinking in cars.

Since the complaint, police has arrested more than 1,259 people and registered 1,420 cases against those drinking in the open. Compared to the 2,700 such cases registered last year, it is a huge leap. 

Police said they caught a bunch of youngsters drinking near the staircase of DLF Central Arcade in DLF City Phase II, an area frequented by dozens of families every day.  

While the RWAs are happy that something is being done about the nuisance, party animals across the city are not too amused.

"Drinking with friends in a car is such a fun experience," said Naveen Desai, an executive with an MNC. "It is intimate and economical. It's sad that we can't do that any more."