Left-sponsored bandh evokes mixed response in Bihar

PATNA: About 600 persons were on Thursday rounded up across Bihar during a day-long bandh called by the Left organisations to protest against Muzaffarpur shelter home sex scandal and alleged atrocities against Dalits. 

The bandh evoked a mixed response with arrests being reported from four districts. Supported by other opposition parties like the RJD and the Congress, the bandh resulted in disruption of rail and road traffic in several districts.

Smaller parties like Hindustani Awam Morcha, Loktantrik Janta Dal (floated by former JD(U) president Sharad Yadav) and NCP also lent support to the bandh, seen by political observers as coming together of non-NDA parties ahead of the 2019 general elections.

According to a release issued by state police headquarters, a total of 598 persons were arrested across the state. Notably, arrests were reported from only four districts.

The maximum number of arrests took place in Saran (328), followed by Madhubani (210), Nawada (35) and Katihar (25).

CPI(ML) state secretary Kunal, in a statement, thanked the people of Bihar for what he termed "success" of the dawn-to-dusk shutdown.

He also demanded resignation of Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi over the issue of "disappearance" of 11 women from a "Sva Adhar Grih" (home for self dependent women) at Muzaffarpur, which was run by the same NGO that controlled the shelter home for girls.

He said "Sva Adhar Grih" was set up as part of a central scheme and the alleged disappearance of inmates was because of "ineffective laws and poor monitoring".

He also welcomed the Supreme Court's suo motu cognizance of the shelter home sex scandal and demanded the resignation of state minister Suresh Sharma, who is also the local MLA. 

Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi criticised the bandh and tweeted: "the opposition has fallen short of issues.

Those who spent their energies in disrupting rail and road traffic and causing trouble to the common people, could have done better to assist the CBI in collecting evidence".

Earlier, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, who is also the leader of the opposition in the state assembly, had tweeted against Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on the Muzaffarpur episode.

The bandh was marked by clashes between protesters and police in Patna and Muzaffarpur and disruption of movement of trains in West Champaran, Sheikhpura, Darbhanga and Jehanabad.
Road traffic was affected on national highways passing through Khagaria, Kishanganj, Vaishali and Begusarai.

In Muzaffarpur, CPI(ML) workers staged a protest in front of the residence of Brajesh Thakur, patron of the state-funded NGO, which was running the girl shelter home that has landed in a major controversy over alleged sexual assault of its inmates. Thakur has been arrested in connection with the scandal.

After the Left activists left the place, a group of RJD workers were seen moving towards Thakur's residence but were stopped by police.

Opposition leaders have alleged that Thakur enjoyed patronage of the chief minister.

The alleged sexual exploitation of more than 30 girls at the centre first came to light in an audit report submitted by the Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS) to the state's social welfare department in April.

An FIR was lodged against 11 people, including Thakur on May 31. 

The probe has now been taken over by the CBI and the NGO running the shelter home has since been blacklisted and the girls have been shifted to other shelter homes in Patna and Madhubani.