Thane shuts down, bandh supporters damage buses, taxis

Following the collapse of an illegal building in Mumbra, that left more than 70 people dead, the NCP and Shiv Sena has called a bandh in Thane to protest the civic administration’s drive to demolish illegally constructed buildings. They have demanded that these buildings be regularised by the government to prevent thousands of people from being rendered homeless overnight. [caption id=“attachment_708344” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] The deserted rickshaw stand in front of Thane station. Parag Shinde/Firstpost[/caption] “Our demand is to regularize all illegal buildings and rehabilitate those evacuated from their homes. All illegal buildings standing in Thane as of today should be protected, irrespective of the previous cut-off date of 1995,” TOI quotes MLA Jitendra Awhad of NCP saying. Though the 12-hour bandh started off peacefully today, there were no autos, taxis or many buses on the roads. As the day progressed, there were reports of minor skirmishes with the bandh supporters targeting public transport. According to Traffline, a traffic helpline, some bandh supporters attacked buses which were plying, damaging them. The helpline also cautioned people with private vehicles and motorists to be careful about stepping out. Some Thane residents tweeted that there were no state-owned bus services available.

However, Twitter was abuzz with criticism about the bandh. Most Twitter users expressed shock at the parties colluding to make demands against the demolition of dangerous illegal buildings. A lot of people alleged that the bandh was a shameful exhibition of vote-bank politics where the parties are vying for the votes of the thousands who have occupied those illegal buildings.

  According to an Indian Express report, MNS chief Raj Thackeray has opposed the bandh and the demand to regularise illegal buildings. He said that such a move will create ‘chaos’ in the state.