RANCHI: Normal life remained standstill during the day-long Jharkhand Bandh called by Opposition parties on Thursday as most of the shops and business establishments remained closed throughout the day while public transport system remained completely suspended in the State.
Meanwhile, talking to the media persons, Chief Minister Raghubar Das announced that the amendment on which Opposition parties had been trying to create confusion among the people was already enacted on June 29.
"Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Jharkhand Amendment) Act, 2017 was enacted after being published in the Jharkhand Gazette on June 29," said Das.
As we need more schools, colleges, power grids, bridges etc. for development of the State, the land acquisition act 2013 has been further simplified without making any changes into it, said the Chief Minister.
"But the Opposition parties have been trying to create confusion among the people by misguiding them as they are anti-development and want to fulfill their political aspirations by misleading the people," said the Chief Minister. They will be taught a lesson by the people in 2019, he added. Later, figures provided by Police headquarters claimed that more than 18973 bandh supporters were arrested all over the State till 5:30 in the evening while protesting on streets all over the State against the changes in land bill.
"Bandh, by and large, remained peaceful all over Jharkhand and no major incident was reported from anywhere in the State," said IG (Operations) Ashish Batra.
A total of 18973 protesters were detained while protesting on roads and were later released after some time, he added. Batra said that 1943 protesters, including leader of Opposition Hemant Soren, JVM Chief Babulal Marandi, former Union Minister Subodh Kant Sahay State Congress Chief Dr Ajoy Kumar along with their supporters were detained in Ranchi. Maximum detention of 2582 protesters was done in Jamshedpur, he added.
During the bandh, Rail transport in some parts of the State was also disrupted and some of the trains like Vananchal, Brahmputra and Farakka Express were stopped for some time in Sahebganj.
Long distance buses also did not plied on roads and most of the schools remained closed apprehending large scale violence all over the State. Amid tight security at each and every corner of Ranchi, Bandh supporters kept on coming out on streets in groups of 20-25 people throughout the day. Soren, calling the bandh unprecedented, said that people voluntarily supported the bandh and none of the shops and business establishments was opened.
"It is not a political battle but a campaign for the sake of the existence of adiwasi-moolwasi people of this state. We have taken to streets against policies of the State Government," said the leader of Opposition.
JVM Chief Babulal Marandi also said that the State Government must get a feel of public sentiments by the support people have extended to the bandh called by the Opposition parties and did not open their shops voluntarily.
Now, it is time for the State Government to withdraw the changes in land bill without any delay, he added.