The 24-hour bandh called by the CPI(Maoist) passed off relatively peacefully with just a few incidents of violence being reported in Jharkhand. The bandh had been called to protest against the arrest of Naxalite leader Madan Pal alias Yugal Pal in Patna on Friday.

Though senior police officers said the bandh failed to make any impact in most parts of the state, all state and national highways in the state wore a deserted look.

DGP J B Mahapatra said: “If the number of violent incidents are taken as a yardstick to evaluate the strength of the extremists, then the support base of the Naxalites has shrunk.”

The driver of a passenger bus coming from Chattisgarh via Garhwa was killed on Tuesday night after Maoists opened fire. Five passengers who were injured in the incident were admitted to the RIMS Hospital here. Two of them are in a critical condition, according to Dr Randhir Singh of RIMS.

The Maoists also triggered blasts at two railway stations in two villages of Latehar district.