Several shops were forcibly closed and vehicles intercepted in the district on Monday by supporters of a hartal called by a section of social media users, who tried to win public support with the appeal that the protest was to condemn the Kathua rape and murder. Though the hartal was not endorsed by any mainline political party, Popular Front of India activists were found leading the demonstrations in various parts of the district.
At Koduvally, protesters stopped several private vehicles and threatened the drivers and other travellers. No shops were allowed to function at Koduvally where the protesters also locked horns with the police and manhandled local journalists. Attackers also damaged the dispensing machines at a petrol pump in the area.
The hartal supporters, largely comprising youths, blocked the Kozhikode-Wayanad road on several stretches and conducted flash sit-ins. Though the police detained 20 protesters from Koduvally and Thamarassery regions, the protests showed no signs of easing till late in the evening.
Private bus operators cancelled several city services in the district soon after incidents of vandalism. Only a few inter-district and city services were operated. At Atholy, merchants tried to open their shops with the support of the police. Tension prevailed in the area as hartal supporters demanded closure of the shops.
Traffic was interrupted at Mathottam for hours as the protesters created a ruckus on the road.
The attempt by the police to clear them ended up in an open clash. The confrontation fizzled out with the arrival of more policemen from nearby stations.
In support of the dawn-to-dusk hartal, several youth movements too came up with protests in the city with placards and slogan-shouting. Activists of the Mujahid Girls’ Movement organised a protest on S.M. Street, alleging that girl children in the country were not safe and that the government was silent on the issue. They also called for stern action against the murderers of the 8-year-old girl in Kathua in Jammu.
