Normal life in Jharkhand remained completely disrupted on Friday during a daylong Statewide bandh called by Opposition parties against recent changes made in CNT and SPT Acts by the State Government. Police had to resort to shooting tear gas and spraying water cannons on the protesters who went on ransacking the shops and the vehicles, breaking windscreens and two-wheelers whatever came in their way on Main Road in Ranchi.
The protesters in Ranchi also attacked on the police van following which the police had to fire tear gas and sprinkle water cannons to disperse the crowd holding bamboo sticks and other traditional arms in their hands. The police also applied light lathi charge when the protesters started pelting stones on the police itself to control the situation.
Several trucks and heavy vehicles were also put on fire in Ranchi, Dumka and other parts of the State. Former Chief Minister Hemant Soren warned the Raghubar Das Government to take immediate decision to roll back the amendment or the scenario will be more dreadful in the State. “It is a do or die like situation for us; there is no question of any compromise on the issue,” said Soren. “The amendment bill was passed in the house in an incorrect way due to which so many Adivasi-Moolvasi people have taken to streets to oppose it,” he added.
Former Union Minister Subodh Kant Sahay also called the whole process of tabling and passage of amendment bill as ‘cheer haran’ of democratic process in Jharkhand Assembly and said that the whole population of the State was against it.
“We will take this movement to every nook and corner of this state…it is just a beginning. Where three incidents of police firing take place, seven innocent people are killed and a frolic with 3.25 crore populations is done….you cannot expect justice in that state,” said Sahay. It is good to see that the whole opposition was on the streets against it, he added.
Former Chief Minister Babulal Marandi, on the other hand, said that the Government should open its eyes after looking at the protest raised by the people on streets all over the State and take the amendment Act back. “The State Government wants to suppress people’s voice by sticks and bullets from which people are not afraid of…..if they were afraid of it, they would not have taken the streets today,” he said.
As many as 8751 persons were arrested from across Jharkhand till 3 pm, including leaders of different political parties which include -- former Chief Ministers Hemant Soren and Babulal Marandi, former Assembly Speaker Alamgir Alam, JVM MlA Pradeep Yadav, former ministers Suresh Paswan, Bandhu Tirkey, Ramchandra Kesri, Jaleshwar Mahto and Mannan Mallick etc.
Most of the shops remained closed during the bandh barring some light vehicles and two wheelers. long distance vehicles did not ply on the roads due to which the people had to face problems throughout the day. The protesters tried to block both the National and State Highways by burning the tyres on the middle of the roads.
Though train routes were not disrupted people coming out of the stations had to face lot of problems as they were not getting autos to ferry them to their destinations.
In Dumka, two heavy vehicles were gutted into fire and blocked the roads by burning the tyres on the roads. More or less, the market remained closed at least till afternoon in Dumka.
In Giridih also, the tower chowk was blocked since early in the morning and most the shops in the town remained closed while only lightweight vehicles plied on the roads.
Jamshedpur remained comparatively peaceful as there was mixed response to bandh in the city. Although, bandh supporters and police forces clashed at different places like Sakchi, Mango and Bistupur but bandh remained peaceful and total of 1245 supporters were detained from East Singhbhum. Bandh supporters resorted to arsoning and vandalism, posing hurdles for commuters on the state highways. They also burnt a truck near Pipla on NH 33.
“Though the protesters tried to take law in their hands but all of them were arrested,” said Jamshedpur SP Anoop T Mathew confirming the torching of vehicles at NH 33.
In Bokaro, over 200 protesters were arrested while they were trying to enforce ‘bandh’. later, they were released from the camp jail in the evening. No untoward incident, however, was reported in the district, though a mini truck (407) was set ablaze by protestors on NH 23 under the Jaridih police station.
Bandh called by united opposition parties, however, did not affect productions in industrial units, including BSl, ESl, ONGC, BPSCl, SRU, Dalmia Cement including others.
Meanwhile, police had to apply light lathi-charge and fire six rounds of bullets in the air when the protesters tried to ransack the local vegetable market in Barhet block of Sahebganj. “A minor scuffle also took place between the police and the protesters where an arrow released from the protesters’ side got penetrated into the ear of a constable,” said Sahebganj SP P Murugan.