Jammu- The Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Jammu (CCIJ) on Thursday gave a call for a bandh on August 26 to protest against the installation of smart meters in the city.
They also demanded that the process of collection of toll on the highway in Samba district be kept in abeyance.
“We have given a bandh call in Jammu on Saturday. Jammu will be shut down. I want the entire Jammu region to observe a bandh. All organisations are with us,” CCIJ President Arun Gupta told reporters here.
He said the people of Jammu are fed up with the installation of smart meters and toll plaza issue at Sarore village.
“The decision was taken in the meeting of the associations of Jammu. The meeting of the different market and trade associations comprising more than 100 bodies was held today (Thursday) at Chamber house,” he said.
He said the meeting has been convened to discuss the issues regarding installation of smart meters and subsequently switching over to prepaid system of billing and Toll Plaza at Sarore.
Twenty-seven activists were detained for violation of restrictions around Sarore toll plaza by the police during protests on Monday.
Authorities had imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), which forbids the gathering of four or more people at a particular place, in and around the toll plaza late Monday.
Regarding the toll plaza at Sarore, he said till the damaged bridge of Taranah Nallah on National Highway is completely restored and the damaged roads are repaired and made fully operational, the toll tax collection be kept in abeyance.
In this regard, he also requested the Lieutenant Governor to give an appointment to discuss these issues, he added.
Cong Holds Protest Over Detention Of YRS Activists
Congress workers on Thursday held a protest and allegedly tried to enter a jail in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district against the detention of ‘Yuva Rajput Sabha’ (YRS) activists who are demanding the removal of the Sarore toll plaza.
Scores of Congress workers, led by former deputy chief minister Tara Chand, gathered in Kathua town and marched towards the jail to meet the detained YRS activists. However, police stopped them before they could reach the jail, officials said.
At least 27 activists of YRS were detained for violating restrictions around the Sarore toll plaza. Authorities had imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), which forbids the gathering of four or more people at a particular place, in and around the toll plaza late Monday night.
The YRS is demanding the removal of the toll plaza on the Jammu-Pathankot national highway in Samba district, claiming that it was illegally set up to collect toll from the common people.
Congress leader Chand lambasted the BJP government at the Centre for imposing taxes on the people amid unprecedented price rise and unemployment.
“We want their release. The government is crushing the voice of common people for every genuine cause. The BJP has utterly failed to safeguard the rights of the Jammu people and save them from all sorts of undue harassment,” he told reporters here.
He also targeted the J-K administration for detaining the YRS leaders for holding a “peaceful protest” demanding the removal of the toll plaza.
In Samba, members of various organisations held protests and blocked traffic for hours on the highway.
Former minister Manjit Singh asked the Centre to stop “illegal collection” of toll tax at Sarore.
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