Jamshedpur, May 18 : Movement of traffic on NH-33 between Jamshedpur and Ghatshila was hit for over five hours on Thursday morning as JVM activists as a part of statewide agitation staged a ‘Chakka Jam’ demanding release of senior party leader Pradip Yadav.
Over 200 party activists carrying flags hit the highway, bringing traffic to a grinding halt. They burnt tyres at Pipla, Bara Banki and Ghatshila during the agitation which began at 6.30 am and continued till 11.30 am.
MLA from Poreyahat, Yadav was arrested on April 22 from Godda while he was on hunger strike to protest against land acquisition for Adani Group’s 1,600MW power plant.
As the news spread a police party reached the spot. JVM’s central secretary Abhay Singh alongwith other party activists were arrested. They were brought to the MGM police station soon after the arrest from where they were later released in the afternoon.
” The State Government is using its force to remain silent against injustice. We demand immediate release of our senior leader Pradip Yadav. The BJP government in the state is only helping big investors like Adani. We will not allow this to continue this,” said Singh.
DSP Ajay Karketta said that adequate police force were deployed for preventing untoward incident. ” The agitation went off peacefully,” he said.
Vehicular movement was badly affected here as activists carrying party flags, slogan-shouting supporters of the party launched the stir. Commuters who were caught in the road blockade were seen cursing the activists. They blamed the parties for indulging in politics rather than solving the issue.
Another JVM leader said that the success of �chakka jam� clearly indicates that the masses are supporting the cause. He said that the agitation has witnessed overwhelming response and this only goes to show that the governments can no play with the sentiments of people.