Bandh paralyses the nation

New Delhi, Jul 5: The normal routine in many parts of the country got upset by the nationwide hartal called by non-Congress political parties on Monday, Jul 5 as the protest against the fuel price hike. The nation remained partially paralysed when the Bandh turned violent in some of the states.

Parties taking part in the shutdown include, the Janata Dal (United), Samajwadi Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Telugu Desam Party, Shiv Sena, AIADMK, MDMK and Akali Dal besides Bharatiya Janata Party. The impacts of hartal varied from state to state.

Delhi: Bandh affected the capital partially. BJP workers disrupted the road traffic in some parts of Delhi. Flights and train services were functioning normally. Most educational institutions and private and public sectors remained open. Police detained several BJP protestors in Delhi.

Uttar Pradesh: All the markets were shut and police lathicharged the BJP protestors in Lucknow. BJP leaders Arun Jaitley, BJP Vice President Muktar Abbas Naqvi and Siddharth Nadh Singh were detained by court orders.

Maharashtra: Hartal turned violent in Maharashtra where roads and railway services got badly affected by the protestors. Around 80 flights were cancelled which include both departure and arrival planes. Taxis, autorikshaws and buses remain off roads. Schools, private offices and colleges also remained closed. In Pune, 12 city buses were stoned and damaged by the protestors. More than 40,000 policemen are on duty to avoid violence during the strike.

Bihar: In Bihar, train services were obstructed as the rioters stopped express trains. At least 10 express trains have been stopped in Patna, while all buses and autos are also staying off the roads in Bihar.

Bengal: The leftist bastion, Kolkata was the city worstly affected by the nationwide strike. All flights except the Air India planes were cancelled due to the strike. Public transport was badly affected. Train services also reached a complete hault at Howrah.

Karnataka: BJP-ruled state was practically shut down, though the buses were running and autos and taxis were off the road. Trains running on time. Most of the software firms remained closed in the IT-city Bangalore.

Andhra Pradesh: BJP and TDP are leading the strike in the state. Over 1,200 buses went off the road in the state, while four buses were damaged by the protesters. Hyderabad witnessed partial bandh as schools and colleges remained shut. Public transport services including buses were plying in the city. Police lathicharged several protestors in Hyderabad.

Kerala: This is the second strike going on in Kerala against the fuel price hike with in a span of ten days. The strike stroke the normal life in Kerala. All shops and institutions were kept closed. Buses, taxis and auto services were off the road. No violence has been reported from anywhere yet.

Orissa: Normal life was disturbed as road and rail services were hit by the strike. Trains services got delayed as the rioters sat on the rail tracks. State government has not called for the closure of schools and colleges though the attendance in the institutions were very weak.

There was no impact of bandh in Punjab, Chennai, Himachal and Haryana.

NDA working chairperson LK Advani said that this might be the first time in the history of India's politics that almost all political parties participate the Bharat bandh. Advani urged all NDA members participating the strike to maintain it peaceful.

OneIndia News