Poor response to Bharat Bandh in Tamil Nadu

The Bharat Bandh called on Monday by regional and national opposition parties against the hike of fuel prices turned out to be a flop across the state. Besides a few incidents of road and rail blockades and demonstrates, normal life was not affected due to the strike.

In Vellore and Tiruvannamalai, traffic was as usual while most of the shops were open in both the districts. In Vellore, around 100 DMK and Congress cadres, including DMK MLAs AP Nandakumar (Anaicut) and P Karthikeyan (Vellore) were arrested, during a rally. As many as 435 persons including 66 women were arrested across Vellore district for participating in demonstrations.

At Gudiyattam, Congress and DMK party cadres blocked the Gudiyattam-Vellore highway. At Ambur, they blocked the Vellore-Bengaluru national highway. They also conducted a rail roko at Ambur station. 

In Kanniyakumari district, glass windows of seven buses were broken due to stone pelting in Thuckalai and Marthandam. Around 1,020 cadre courted arrest after resorting to road blockades at 16 locations. Led by N Suresh Rajan, Nagercoil MLA, DMK cadre attempted to down shutters of commercial establishments in the bazaar area near Anna bus stand. Thereafter, 15 cadre were arrested, said N Sreenatha, Kanniyakumari SP. At several places, opposition cadres carried two-wheelers on bullock carts to protest against the hike.

In Madurai, 586 cadres were arrested at 14 locations. As many as 210 cadres of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) were arrested during demonstrations on Scott road and opposite the head post office. At Teppakulam, Congress cadre attempted to besiege a petrol bunk. Also, 24 cadres were arrested during rail rokos in Kovilpatti and in Virudhunagar, said sources. In Dindigul, 759 cadres were arrested for attempting road blockades. Meanwhile, many attempted to burn an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Dindigul central. A total of 615 cadre courted arrest after staging road rokos at 15 locations. In Tirunelveli, 360 cadres were arrested, while 83 cadres were arrested in Sivagangai. Fishing activities were suspended as most fishermen at coastal villages of Thoothukudi, Ramanathapuram, Tirunelveli and Kanniyakumari districts extended support to the bandh, sources said.

In Tiruchy, 200 CPI and CPM cadre, including 18 women, were held while they attempted a road block and tried to besiege the Regional Passport Office. Meanwhile, 600 workers of various political parties were arrested when they resorted to road and rail blockades.  A TNSTC bus plying between Chidambaram and Madurai was stoned at Vazhuthur by miscreants on a bike.

In Tiruvarur, 800 party cadre were held for blocking roads. In Karur, around 2,000 lorries stayed off roads. Auto-rickshaws too took part in the strike in Karur, Pallapatti and Aravakkurichi.