DMK's Cauvery bandh evokes partial success in TN

Thursday's Opposition-sponsored bandh did not bring Tamil Nadu to a standstill.
A Ganesh Nadar reports.

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam-led Opposition bandh -- demanding an early establishment of the Cauvery Management Board to ensure water for farmers as per the Supreme Court orders -- met with partial success.

The shutdown was marked by protest demonstrations and impromptu rallies.

DMK Working President M K Stalin led a rally of Opposition parties with various party cadres participating in it.

Tamil Nadu Congress Committee President Su Thirunavukkarasar and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi chief Thol Thirumavalavan accompanied Stalin.

The DMK and other Opposition parties have been staging protests across the state for the past four days over the Cauvery issue.

With a key traders body in Tamil Nadu backing the shutdown, retail outlets, grocery shops and establishments were closed in most places across the state, including Chennai and the Cauvery delta districts of Tiruchirappalli and Thanjavur.

Thursday's bandh was a success as far as a business shutdown was concerned, but it did not bring the state to a standstill.

This was mainly because the transporters union affiliated to the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam did not join the strike. Its members manned the buses which could be seen plying all over the state.

Though less than half the buses were on the streets, none of them was crowded. Nor did the buses have a security escort, indicating that the state intelligence bureau did not anticipate violence.

Ride-sharing apps functioned normally, pointing to the bandh's limited impact.

Traffic functioned smoothly till groups of protestors from the DMK and the Congress materialised to block arterial roads, disrupting the flow of traffic.

In fact, this was the scene all over Chennai, with the police having their counter-measures down to a pat.

The police had buses stationed alongside every morcha for which permission has been granted, and once the rally concluded, its participants were herded into the buses and taken to a nearby marriage hall, to be left out in the evening.

Shops and commercial establishments remained closed, especially on the main roads, fearing stone-throwing and mobs indulging in looting. In the bylanes, however, it was business as usual for small shops.

The protests mainly involved slogan-shouting, marching and squatting on the roads, the decibel level peaking as television cameras came closer.

Will water flow in the Cauvery because of this bandh? Most people doubt it as no decisions can be expected till May 12 when neighbouring Karnataka votes.

As a precaution, buses from Karnataka were stopped at the Tamil Nadu border.