Bengal: 2nd bandh in 2 days

The Trinamool Congress strike, the second in West Bengal in two days, brought life to a standstill across the state on Wednesday.

The Trinamool Congress strike, the second in West Bengal in two days, brought life to a standstill across the state on Wednesday.

Most public transport was off the roads and there was very little attendance in offices and commercial establishments. Except for a few stray clashes, the bandh was more or less peaceful. However, over 2,500 people were arrested across the state on charges of disrupting normal life.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee thanked the people for making the bandh successful. “The Government should take a lesson from this; that they have lost all right to stick to office. The people have rejected them, the successful bandh has proved that,” Mamata said on Wednesday.

But, CPI(M) State Committee Secretary Biman Bose countered her claims saying the bandh was rejected by the people. “Mamata’s weapon did not work. Life was normal in the state. The bandh was rejected by the people,” Bose said.

Though the strike crippled life in many districts, the industrial towns of Durgapur, Assansol and Barrackpore were normal. The bandh also did not affect the tea gardens in Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling.

Howrah station, one of the busiest junctions in the country, wore an empty and abandoned look. With buses, taxis and private cars staying off the road, even the Howrah Bridge, which remains crowded at all times, appeared desolate.

Home Secretary P R Ray said the transport sector was badly hit, particularly due to road and rail blockades in some districts. There were reports of obstruction of train services at various places on the Sealdah and Howrah divisions.