Shutdown hits normal life across states, but BJP dubs it a failure

Congress workers set a scooter on fire during a protest in Jabalpur, on Monday. Pic/PTI

The Bharat Bandh called by the Congress and Left on Monday against rising fuel prices and tumbling rupee evoked mixed response in the country as the Opposition closed its ranks against the Modi government. The BJP dubbed the protest a failure.

The daylong shutdown affected normal life in Odisha, Karnataka, Bihar, Kerala and Tripura and triggered a mixed response in Gujarat, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. But it was mostly ineffective in the Mamata Banerjee-ruled West Bengal. Shutdown enforcers resorted to blocking roads and rail tracks disrupting traffic in several parts of the country. Bandh supporters allegedly resorted to violence and clashed with the police in some parts, prompting the ruling BJP, which dubbed the shutdown a "complete failure", of accusing the Congress of creating an "environment of fear".

Normal life was paralysed in Odisha with vehicular movement and train services thrown out of gear as Congress workers blocked roads and trains. Hundreds of Congress activists were arrested. The railways cancelled 12 trains while schools and colleges were closed.

2-year-old dies on way to hospital
A critically ill two-year-old girl died on her way to a hospital, as bandh supporters blocked roads in Jehanabad town. Pramod Manjhi, the victim's father, said his daughter was suffering from diarrhoea and had to be taken to hospital. The BJP and JD-U leaders attacked the Opp for the girl's death due to their shutdown called against fuel price hike.

Trinamool Congress opposes shutdown
The bandh called by the Congress and the Left Front remained largely ineffective in West Bengal, as vehicular traffic was near normal and all offices were open. The TMC had supported the issues raised by the Opposition. The party, however, opposed the shutdown stating it only led to loss of working hours.

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