VADODARA, OCT 25: Traffic on the Vishwamitri bridge near Kalaghoda came to a grinding halt for over half an hour on Monday as Youth Congress workers went on a chakkajam (road blockage) in protest against the hike in bus fares and prices of other essential commodities.Six YC workers were detained and later released. The chakkajam caught the police unawares. Persuasion by the traffic police yielded no result with the Congress workers remaining adamant. A group of nearly 50 Congress workers led by in-charge president Naval Bajaj, Ashok Gupta and others lined up across the road, bringing the traffic to a standstill.
Several party workers also squatted on the street and some even lay down, preventing the two-wheelers, four-wheelers and autorickshaws from moving ahead.
Shouting anti-BJP and anti-Keshubhai Patel slogans, the Congress workers also requested the motorists not to move ahead. In the initial stages when the chakkajam started around 4.30 p.m., some motorists managed to make use of the lane which is meant for pedestrians. Within moments, however, the workers were successful in preventing them from moving their vehicles.The workers also climbed atop a bus and demanded that the bus fare hike be withdrawn. They expressed surprise that the price of essential commodities continued to rise.
Those who were stranded were trying to find ways to come out of the traffic jam. However, only a handful succeeded.
Before the police came to the site, the traffic police was forced to divert the traffic from near the Aradhana Talkies to prevent further jam near the Vishwamitri bridge.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.