Train services were disrupted and roads blocked even as bandh supporters clashed with police in various locations in West Bengal during the 24-hour Bharat Bandh called by central unions on Thursday.
In some places, Bandh supporters did not allow buses to circulate and asked passengers to get off public transport. Shops were damaged in central Kolkata when bandh supporters allegedly threw bricks and used sticks to break bus windshields in Cooch Behar.
In Taratala in Kolkata, a fight broke out between the police and BJP workers when the latter held a demonstration against the bandh. Later, the police had to resort to the lathi charge and some people were arrested. Top BJP leaders were supposed to attend the rally.
In downtown Kolkata, passengers were asked to get off buses even as bandh supporters claimed that no one was forced. Incidents of this type were also reported in districts such as Barasat in North 24 Parganas.
At Lenin Sarani in Kolkata, bandh supporters could be seen damaging shops. The protests were also parked outside metro stations. Many stores in Kolkata and other areas of the districts remained closed.
“Some groups were protesting in front of the Dum Dum, Chandni Chowk and Central Metro stations. There were attempts to enter the Metro station but they failed. There were no interruptions in Metro services, ”said the Kolkata Metro spokesperson.
Protesters threw objects such as banana leaves and tree branches onto overhead cables and sat on train tracks to block trains. These incidents were reported from various locations, including Canning and Jhargram.
The Mamata Banerjee administration in West Bengal has made it mandatory for government officials to attend the office on Thursday to thwart the so-called Bharat Bandh by the unions. Passengers had a harrowing moment to reach their destinations.
“I had to go to Calcutta, but I had to abandon the idea because the train services were disrupted and the bandh supporters were facing the police in many places,” said Arindam Das, a resident of Gosaba in South 24 Parganas.
Bandh supporters also clashed with the police in many places including Barasat, Kamarhati, and Durgapur.
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