Stuck in ballot land, what to do?

HUNDREDS OF passengers were stranded at the Charbagh railway and bus stations waiting for a transport to reach their destinations on Tuesday. Due to the local bodies elections, city bus, private taxis and autos were not allowed to ply on city roads from morning till 5.00 p.m.

HUNDREDS OF passengers were stranded at the Charbagh railway and bus stations waiting for a transport to reach their destinations on Tuesday.

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Due to the local bodies elections, city bus, private taxis and autos were not allowed to ply on city roads from morning till 5.00 p.m.

Happy with the absence of vehicles from the city roads the rickshaw-pullers immediately raised their fares and cashed in on the occasion. They charged Rs 50 for a kilometre from the station.

Passengers coming from outside Lucknow at the Charbagh railway station or at Charbagh bus station had to face a lot of problem for arranging a means of transport to reach their destinations.

Sudhir Arora, an executive with a private firm came to city from Delhi to find no vehicles on road. He said, “I had only rickshaw as the only mean of transport to ply on roads. I had to pay Rs 100 to reach my hotel in Hussainganj.” Similarly, people boarding train and flights had to face a lot of problems. KK Srivastava, a resident of Gomti Nagar, said, “My son had to show the ticket of train at seven spots before reaching Charbagh railway station. He had to go to Chennai for joining his job.”

Some old people were also stopped and misbehaved by the forces when they tried to move around during the restrictions on the movement of vehicles in the city. Despite of ban on plying of vehicles without the passes some SP leaders like Ram Singh Rana were seen moving in the cavalcade of cars in the city. Rana also went to Badalikhera Sarojini Nagar where the alleged rigging taken place.