Bhubaneswar: The 12-hour dawn-to-dusk bandh called by Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in 14 Odisha districts on Wednesday in protest against the violence before and after the Hanuman Jayanti celebrations in Sambalpur Town hit normal life in most areas.
The bandh call is supported by Bajarang Dal and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The dawn-to-dusk bandh is being observed in Sambalpur, Sundargarh, Jharsuguda, Deogarh, Bargarh, Sonepur, Boudh, Balangir, Kalahandi, Nuapada, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Koraput and Rayagada districts of the state.
All shops and business establishments, government and private offices, and educational institutions in these districts in western Odisha remained closed. With schools closed due to the heat wave prevailing across the state, academic institutions were naturally closed. The roads also wore a deserted look everywhere.
Vehicular movement was far and few within the cities as well as the state highways as the bandh supporters set up road blockades at various points. The bandh supporters also picketed and shut down even the few shops that opened in the morning.
However, emergency services like ambulances, Fire Brigade vehicles, and others were exempted from the purview of the bandh. Till the time of filing this report, no untoward incident was reported from anywhere.
The effect of the bandh was witnessed in all 14 districts, including Sundargarh and Sambalpur districts.
It is worth mentioning here that violence erupted during a motorcycle procession organised by Hanuman Jayanti Samanwaya Samiti in Sambalpur Town ahead of the Hanuman Jayanti on April 12 leaving several people, including police personnel, injured and vehicles damaged.
The violence occurred again in the town on April 14 when the Hanuman Jayanti procession was passing through Sambalpur town. A number of shops were torched and ransacked on the night of April 14.
So far, Odisha Police has arrested 86 people for their alleged involvement in the violence in Sambalpur city, a curfew was imposed in Sambalpur on April 15 and the state government suspended internet services in Sambalpur district till 10.00 am on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Odisha police detained BJP state unit president Manmohan Samal, Union Minister Bishweswar Tudu, and several other leaders, including MPs and MLAs, when they were en route to violence-hit Sambalpur town on Tuesday.
