Chennai::
Chennai commuters were in for a surprise on Monday when the Jallikattu protest spilled over to the streets with roads getting choked as protesters squatted on the roads for hours blocking traffic and bringing Chennai to a standstill.
After police launched early morning crackdown against the protesters in Marina, angry youth, who were denied entrance to Marina, blocked traffic in arterial roads on a busy Monday morning paralysing the city till evening.
It all started around 11am as Poonamallee stretch after Sangam theatre was blocked by students who sat on road forcing people to take alternate stretch towards Kellys to reach Egmore.
But that too was blocked as women and students sat there in protest. It was a total control by mob as traffic policemen posted there watched helplessly.
In the midst of road, there were sermons and speeches. This time it was not about Jallikattu, it was about demonetisation, corruption and other issues as a small crowd gathered much to the discomfort of motorists who could do nothing but to wait in the hot sun.
As these mob held Chennai to ransom, the plight of people wanting to catch train and school children wanting to go home was ignored. Way was cleared for a mortuary van by youth who forced the vehicles to make way by wielding sticks near Purusaiwalkam.
They ignored the plight of people including construction workers -- Dhukiram and Rajkishore Prasad from Bihar who wanted to reach station to catch a train to Hyderabad as they have to join duty at Shamsabad Airport. “With luggage, we started in the morning to catch a bus at Koyambedu, when they said the bus is available only at 7pm, we started towards Chennai Central station to catch a train. We took a auto but he abandoned us here. We don’t know how to go to the station,” he said.
Similarly, school children were also caught in the traffic snarl as schools closed early following violence being reported in the city. Children from Montessori school were also not spared.
“I have to take them to a house near Central. It is too hot and I don’t know when the protesters would yield,” said the driver of the auto, in which three little girls, unaware of the volatile situation, were travelling.
Traffic was affected in Ashok Nagar, Ekattuthangal and Saidapet also. In Kathipara flyover, passengers abandoned their buses and took to Metro and suburban train as traffic failed to move.
The Koyambedu bus terminus for Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses remained empty as there were no buses for several hours.Pensioner Subramanium said that he wanted to go to Velachery from Perambur but since the MRTS was closed, he wanted to give a try at Koyambedu bus terminus. “My effort failed. Now this is the first time, I am travelling at Metro,” he said.
A protester tried to justify the cause. “We wanted a couple of hours more. The police refused. Now we will block the roads. Let us see how the people in secretariat return back,” he said.
However, the traffic was later cleared by evening but then the anger was more on protesters.
Chennai commuters were in for a surprise on Monday when the Jallikattu protest spilled over to the streets with roads getting choked as protesters squatted on the roads for hours blocking traffic and bringing Chennai to a standstill.
After police launched early morning crackdown against the protesters in Marina, angry youth, who were denied entrance to Marina, blocked traffic in arterial roads on a busy Monday morning paralysing the city till evening.
It all started around 11am as Poonamallee stretch after Sangam theatre was blocked by students who sat on road forcing people to take alternate stretch towards Kellys to reach Egmore.
But that too was blocked as women and students sat there in protest. It was a total control by mob as traffic policemen posted there watched helplessly.
In the midst of road, there were sermons and speeches. This time it was not about Jallikattu, it was about demonetisation, corruption and other issues as a small crowd gathered much to the discomfort of motorists who could do nothing but to wait in the hot sun.
As these mob held Chennai to ransom, the plight of people wanting to catch train and school children wanting to go home was ignored. Way was cleared for a mortuary van by youth who forced the vehicles to make way by wielding sticks near Purusaiwalkam.
They ignored the plight of people including construction workers -- Dhukiram and Rajkishore Prasad from Bihar who wanted to reach station to catch a train to Hyderabad as they have to join duty at Shamsabad Airport. “With luggage, we started in the morning to catch a bus at Koyambedu, when they said the bus is available only at 7pm, we started towards Chennai Central station to catch a train. We took a auto but he abandoned us here. We don’t know how to go to the station,” he said.
Similarly, school children were also caught in the traffic snarl as schools closed early following violence being reported in the city. Children from Montessori school were also not spared.
“I have to take them to a house near Central. It is too hot and I don’t know when the protesters would yield,” said the driver of the auto, in which three little girls, unaware of the volatile situation, were travelling.
Traffic was affected in Ashok Nagar, Ekattuthangal and Saidapet also. In Kathipara flyover, passengers abandoned their buses and took to Metro and suburban train as traffic failed to move.
The Koyambedu bus terminus for Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses remained empty as there were no buses for several hours.Pensioner Subramanium said that he wanted to go to Velachery from Perambur but since the MRTS was closed, he wanted to give a try at Koyambedu bus terminus. “My effort failed. Now this is the first time, I am travelling at Metro,” he said.
A protester tried to justify the cause. “We wanted a couple of hours more. The police refused. Now we will block the roads. Let us see how the people in secretariat return back,” he said.
However, the traffic was later cleared by evening but then the anger was more on protesters.
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