BEST bus stoned during anti-CAA, NRC Maha shutdown call

At least one BEST bus was stoned in Mumbai and its driver injured as the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) sponsored Maharashtra shutdown started, eliciting mixed response, here on Friday.

The bus was pelted with stones in Chembur and the driver Vilas B. Dabhade, 53, was injured, though commuters escaped unhurt. He has been admitted to the Shatabdi Hospital in Govandi, said officials.

VBA President Prakash Ambedkar urged his supporters to ensure "a peaceful and violence-free bandh" to oppose the Citizens Amendment Act (CAA), National Register for Citizens (NRC) and National Population Register (NPR).

Despite the shutdown call by over 35 social and trade organisations, including the VBA, normal life remained unaffected in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Nagpur and other cities.

However, shops and establishments remained shut in parts of Mumbai, Nashik, Aurangabad, Akola, though in Thane some activists attempted to block a main road, but were cleared by the police.

In Mumbai suburban trains and the BEST buses -- the city's lifelines -- functioned normally, and most educational institutions, shops, malls, multiplexes, commercial plazas were open as police maintained tight police security.

Later in the day, several other anti-CAA/NRC/NPR related events and discussions are planned in Mumbai and other areas as part of the state shutdown.IANS