Ujjain: District Congress gave a call for half-day bandh on Saturday to protest against recent hikes in fuel and gas cylinders prices across the country.
Congress leaders moved across the city from early morning to shut the markets, restaurants, petrol pumps and public conveyance. But as per reports the impact of ‘bandh’ remained negligible as the shopkeepers did close their shops when the Congress rally came to the markets to seek their support for the bandh. But, as the rally left for another place the shopkeepers opened their shops.
At some places like Dewas-Gate and Nanakheda, Congress leaders also bore the brunt of shopkeepers while at Piplinaka area BJP supporters raised slogans to support PM Modi, BJP government and its policies right in front of the Congress rally.
Cong leaders set out to shut shops in morning
Early morning Congress leaders went out to markets of the city in groups and started to shut shops invoking Gandhian way-- with folded hands. In fact the leaders had informed about the ‘bandh’ call to city dwellers in advance by taking out a rally across the city. But on Saturday morning the Congress workers had a hard time as public conveyance and restaurants at bus stands, railway station areas started early on the day.
Shut restaurant run by party member
Meanwhile the Congress leaders assembled at Kanthal Square and started announcing on speakers about the bandh call given by the party. First they went to old city and appealed to shut the shops and restaurants later the leaders moved to Freeganj, Sindhi Colony and Nanakheda where they appealed to shut restaurants and petrol pumps. The Congress party members also stopped public conveyance like magic and auto rickshaws and forced passengers to get down. The party members also forced to shut a restaurant run by their own party worker.
Administration remains on alert
For shutting the city, Congress leaders set out in the form of rallies, but the police and district administration remained on alert the whole day to ward off any untoward incident and to maintain law and order across the city.
Congress district head Mahesh Soni, Kamal Patel, Batukshankar Joshi, Chetan Yadav, Bharatshankar Joshi, Jitendra Goyal, Ravi Rai, Rajesh Tiwari, Kailash Bisen, Dipak Mehre and other party leaders were present.
Bandh was successful, claims Congress
Congress spokesperson Vivek Soni said that rising prices of fuels and domestic gas cylinders has made it harder for commoners to make both ends meet, hence Congress staged a protest against rising prices. Soni further added that hundreds of Congress leaders hit the roads in the morning to shut the markets and locals extended tremendous support to the bandh call given by Congress. District Congress head Mahesh Soni expressed gratitude to locals for extending their support to bandh.
