The dawn-to-dusk hartal called by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was near-total in the district on Monday and passed off with sporadic incidents of violence that were reported from various parts of the district.
Public transport services, including those operated by the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), kept off the roads, owing to the concurrent vehicle strike that was called by pro-Left organisations in the transport sector. A large number of commuters had to rely on the railway services. However, KSRTC buses were pressed into service after 6 p.m. Private vehicles, barring a very few, had kept off the roads during the hartal.
In Kanjirappally, LDF activists damaged a private jeep after its owner had ignored the demand to refrain from driving the vehicle on account of the hartal. The local police have registered a case against nearly 50 persons in connection with the incident.
In another incident that had occurred in Vaikom, P.N. Govindan, the manager of the Vechoor branch of the State Bank of Travancore (SBT) was assaulted by 10 miscreants inside the premises of the bank.
The police have registered a case against the assailants. The injured has been admitted at the Vaikom taluk hospital.
Most shops and business establishments remained shut throughout the day. The government offices in the district witnessed sparse attendance. Educational institutions were also closed on account of the hartal. The Mahatma Gandhi University had postponed all of its examinations that were scheduled for the day.
The police department had deployed additional personnel strength to the aid posts located at the various places like the Railway station and the bus stations. Vigilant patrolling was also ensured in many places order to prevent any untoward incidents.
Separate demonstrations were taken out at various places. CPI (M) district secretary K.J. Thomas inaugurated the protest march and meeting staged by the LDF in the Kottayam town. Later on the day, a march taken out by the BJP was inaugurated by BJP state campaign committee chairman N.K. Narayanan Namboothiri.
