The State police have scaled down their massive deployment of security personnel to manage the indefinite siege of the Secretariat led by the Left Democratic Front, which concluded here on Tuesday afternoon.
An official said the first of the Central Paramilitary force companies, camped in the University Arts and Sanskrit colleges, would break camp on Wednesday. The policemen called for agitation duty had been reverted to their original units, he said.
CPI (M) State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan called off the agitation while addressing a mammoth crowd of LDF activists, mostly CPI (M) men, who had laid siege to the Secretariat for nearly 30 hours at a stretch.
The announcement came at 1.20 p.m. and was hailed by the protestors. They welcomed the announcement with loud and rhythmic sloganeering, clapping, and dancing.
VS’s address
The crowd started dispersing on its own after Opposition Leader V.S. Achuthanandan finished his address. He asked the activists not to miss the lunch kept prepared for them at the CPI(M)-run community kitchen. “Disperse peacefully and in an ordered manner”, he added.
Soon, railway stations and bus stands in the city turned into a sea of humanity. Long-distance buses and trains were packed with LDF protestors returning home.
Tough task
The police had a tough time managing the traffic, with thousands of pedestrians on the road at the same time. They were able to revert the traffic to normal by 4.30 p.m. Life in the city, which had come to a stand still for a day-and-a-half, slowly limped back to normal by 6 p.m.
Hotels and bars opened for business. Market places were crowded with shoppers. And families were out with children at public places and on the beach.
