Post the big hike announced by the oil companies on the prices of petrol, the opposition parties have called for a Bharat Bandh on May 31, 2012. But so far there has been mixed responses to the Bandh to demand a rollback of the hiked prices of the fuel.
Many people in the metros have chosen to stay at home and support the protest. There are reports that many of the BEST buses in Mumbai have been stoned and are also being set on fire. Trains have been stopped in a few places in Uttar Pradesh and a few places in Odisha, Roads connecting the Ghaziabad and Delhi has been blocked and has caused much inconvenience.
Some of the major allies of the UPA like the Trinamool and the DMK have also strongly opposed the hike and supported the protest. However, both the governments have clarified that they will not destabilise the central government.
In Mumbai, apart from the violence on some of the areas, the empty local trains also show the support for the Bandh. The BJP and Shivsena have said that the essential services will not be shut, but have appealed to the shopkeepers to keep it close. Even the police has deployed 48,000 cops on Bandh duty.
