Demonstrations, marches mark Bharat Bandh; normal life unaffected in U.P.

Essential services remained unaffected. Government and private offices, and businesses and educational institutes too stayed open in a majority of districts.

The Bharat Bandh call given by Dalit and tribal organisations on Wednesday to protest the Supreme Court’s recent order on reservations evoked mixed response in Uttar Pradesh.

Demonstrations, marches mark Bharat Bandh; normal life unaffected in U.P.

The Bandh had little impact on normal life even as supporters of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Samajwadi Party (SP), Azad Samaj Party (ASP) and Dalit bodies organised demonstrations, dharnas and marches in various districts of the state. Traffic was thrown out of gear in Lucknow, Agra, Prayagraj, Saharanpur and Meerut as protestors took to the streets with posters and banners opposing the apex court’s verdict order.

Essential services remained unaffected. Government and private offices, and businesses and educational institutes too stayed open in a majority of districts.

Director general of police (DGP) Prashant Kumar said security was tightened in all districts, and there was no report of any untoward incident in the state. Regular patrolling was done by police officers in coordination with district administration officers, he added.

The state police had deployed 245 companies of Pradeshik Armed Constabulary (PAC), eight companies of Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) and civil police across the state during the bandh. The police kept an eye on protesters with drones and CCTV cameras.

Backed by leaders of ASP, BSP, Bhim Army and Dalit bodies, thousands of protesters took to the streets in Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Saharanpur, Bijnor and other districts of western Uttar Pradesh to extend their support to the call of Bharat Bandh.

In Saharanpur, the protesters jammed traffic for hours at the key Ghantaghar Crossing. Amid elaborate security arrangements to maintain law and order, the protest led to schools shutting down for a day at a few places in Saharanpur, the home of Azad Samajwadi Party chief and MP Chandrashekher Azad.

In Lucknow, too, it received mixed response. During the protest, workers of the SP, BSP and Bhim Army raised slogans against the Union government by calling it anti-Dalit. Many women and youngsters were among the agitators who opposed a Supreme Court verdict on reservations given to scheduled castes (SCs) and scheduled tribes (STs).

Such demonstrations were seen near the Ambedkar Statue in Hazratganj, Parivartan Chowk, Qaiserbagh and some other parts of the city.

In Agra, traffic on Mahatma Gandhi Road was thrown out of gear in the early half of the day as different groups marched towards the district collectorate compound to oppose any quota within quota in the reservation system as suggested by the Supreme Court in a recent order.

Agra, often termed the Dalit capital, was expected to see an impressive show of strength on the day but the protest remained confined to groups marching towards the district headquarters.

In Aligarh, BSP and Azad Samaj Party supporters attempted to enter the railway station to disrupt train movements but heavy deployment of Railway Protection Force and other personnel thwarted their plans.

More than a hundred people, mostly from the BSP, gathered at district magistrate’s office in Mathura and handed over memorandum.

In Kasganj, activists of ASP and Bhim Army took the lead and took out a procession on vehicles on the Mathura-Bareilly highway affecting traffic on it. Police had a confrontation with the youngsters in the group as even ambulances were trapped in a road jam caused due to the project.

There was no visible impact of the bandh on the markets in Firozabad and nearby areas because of deployed police force. A sit-in was organised at Gandhi Park Crossing there for some time.

Those supporting the Bandh call raised the slogans of ‘Jai Bhim’ and ‘Jab Tak Suraj Chand Rahega... Baba Sahab ka naam rahega’ in Mainpuri as they marched through the city roads.

In eastern parts of the state, too, the bandh was largely peaceful. Police officials carried out a raid at the residence of president of Ambedkar Jan Morcha Shravan Nirala at his Bichiya Colony residence in Gorakhpur, but Nirala was not present in his house then.

BSP workers assembled at Dr Ambedkar Crossing of Gorakhpur and appealed to traders to down their shutters. The latter kept their shops shut for about an hour.

District police swung into action and SP city Krishna Kumar Bishnoi appealed to traders to resume their businesses.

In Basti and Sant Kabir Nagar, the bandh was successful as business activities were affected. In Deoria, Kushinagar and Siddharthnagar, the bandh evoked good response as shops were closed but daily life there remained unaffected.

In Kanpur, some shops near the BSP’s office were closed while public buses plied as usual. Similar scenes were witnessed in Unnao, Muzaffarnagar, Sambhal, Jalaun, Etawah and Hathras.

Supported Bandh as there is public anger: Maya

BSP chief Mayawati in a post on X said the BSP supported Bharat Bandh because there was anger and resentment against the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the sub-classification within SC/ST categories passed on August 1. She also alleged that there was a conspiracy against the reservation system by parties such as the BJP and the Congress, who wanted to make it ineffective and finally end it. “As such, the people of these classes have given a memorandum to the government today under ‘Bharat Bandh’ and made a strong demand to abolish the changes made in the reservation system through a constitutional amendment.” “The BJP, Congress and other parties should understand the necessity and sensitivity of the constitutional right of reservation given to the OBC community along with SC-ST, and they should not play with it,” she said.

Peaceful movement a democratic right: Akhilesh

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav in a post on X said the mass movement to protect the reservation system was a positive effort. “It will instill new consciousness among the exploited and deprived and will prove to be a shield of people’s power against any kind of tampering with reservation. Peaceful movement is a democratic right,” he stated. “When governments will tamper with the Constitution... then the public will have to take to the streets. Public movements put a check on unbridled government,” he added.