JORHAT, Dec 14 - Normal life was totally paralysed in Golaghat district today following a 12-hour bandh call given by the Assam Tea Tribes Students Association from 5 am.
The student body had given the bandh call to protest yesterday�s incident at Bogidhola Tea Estate in Numaligarh where two owners (both brothers) � Sudhir Roy and Samir Roy � reportedly fired at protesting workers at their bungalow resulting in bullet injury to 10 workers.
Vehicular traffic from upper to lower Assam and to and fro got suspended and also to neighbouring Nagaland and Manipur as protesters in large numbers came out to the streets. All business establishments, banks and educational institutes remained closed with almost nil attendance in government offices.
Golaghat ASP (Headquarters) Dhruba Bora said the bandh period passed off peacefully with no untoward incident reported. He said policemen were deployed at the Bogidhola garden and the situation was being closely watched.
Meanwhile, a judicial court in Golaghat, where the two garden owners were produced today, has sent the duo to judicial custody.
Dergaon Correspondent adds: The picketers today blocked the NH-37 at Balijan, Negheriting and Dergaon Chariali and NH-39 at Rangajan, Purabangla as well as Dhodar Ali to enforce the bandh. As a result, hundreds of vehicles, including long distance passenger vehicles, were stranded on the roads.
Kaziranga Correspondent adds: In the Kaziranga area the protesters blocked the NH-37 at different places for around three hours. The road blockade was lifted after officials of the Bokakhat subdivision administration persuaded the protesters for the greater interest of travelling public.
Dibrugarh Staff Correspondent adds: The Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha president and former Union minister Paban Singh Ghatowar today demanded a high-level inquiry into the firing incident of Bogidhola tea garden. Condemning the firing incident, he said how the management dare take law into their hands. �Those guilty must not be spared. Stringent action must be taken against them,� he added.
The ACMS president also demanded that all those administrative officials, including those from the labour department and Assam Tea Employees� Provident Fund Organisation, who have been lenient towards the management by not initiating action against the planters for violating the plantation rules be held responsible for compelling workers to stage protests in the tea gardens.