NEW DELHI: The nationwide bandh called by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) on the Amarnath land transfer issue turned violent in Indore on Thursday leaving two dead, while highways were blocked and trains stopped disrupting normal life in parts of the country.
The bandh evoked mixed response but another 25 people were injured in Jammu, taking the total number of injured to nearly 100, even as curfew remained in force for the third consecutive day in parts of the region.
Life was hit in parts of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, UP, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Assam and Jharkhand. The bandh had little or no impact in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Tripura. Curfew was imposed in four areas of Indore in Madhya Pradesh after members of two communities indulged in violence.
A violent mob also pelted stones at Khajrana Police Station damaging vehicles parked on the premises, an official said, adding that police used teargas to control the situation. “Two people have been killed in violence in Khajrana, while six are injured,” Indore collector Rakesh Shrivastava told reporters.
BJP and VHP workers took to Delhi’s streets, jamming traffic between the capital and its satellite towns of Noida and Gurgaon by blocking the DND flyover and the Mehrauli-Gurgaon road. Many other arterial roads of the capital too were blocked.
Vikas Marg, which connects Central Delhi to East and North Delhi, was jammed.
Protestors even forced bus passengers to alight, bringing traffic to a standstill. Confusion could be witnessed in Lakshmi Nagar, Karol Bagh, ITO crossing and Anand Vihar as well. Many shopkeepers downed shutters after threats by VHP-BJP supporters.
“Initially, we were told those who wished to support the bandh should keep their shops
closed. However, moments after I opened my shop, a group of VHP supporters carrying flags and shouting slogans against the Congress party barged in.
They forced me to close the shop and policemen standing nearby did nothing,” Amit Satija said in Lakshmi Nagar.
