Anti-CAA protesters obstruct key highways in Bengal

Kolkata (IANS) Anti-CAA protesters took to the streets for the third day at a stretch in West Bengal, as they felled trees and burnt tyres to obstruct key national and state highways on Sunday.

At one place in 24 Parganas North district, protesters even started a 'picnic' on the National Highway 34 after putting up a roadblock.

Protests also took place in Murshidabad and Birbhum districts.

At Amdanga in 24 Parganas district, protesters staged a demonstration by felling a tree and torching tyres on the road at Sonadanga and Dhankal on National Highway 34. At Kamdevpur, the protesters first blockaded the highway and then started cutting and mincing vegetables and cooking on the road to start a picnic.

The Kalyani Expressway was blockaded at Ruia Bakultala crossing under Kahardah police station, while demonstrators set ablaze tyres to block the Berachapa-Pritima crossing under Deganga police station.

In Birbhum, demonstrators burnt tyres and blocked the Murarai-Raghunathganj state Highway at Hiyatnagar, and obstructed the road at Mitrapur.

Carrying posters reading "No NRC, No CAA", and "Modi hatao, Desh bachao, BJP hatao, Desh Bachao", protesters set up road blockades on Jangipur-Lalgola state highway at Kantakhali under Raghunathganj police station.

The eastern state has been scalded by escalating violence against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) that began on Friday, and spread to more areas on Saturday. Mobs in various districts torched buses, trains and railway stations, set fire to government property and blocked roads and railway tracks, disrupting train and vehicular movements.

The protests have thrown railway services in jeopardy. EMU local train services on Howrah-Kharagpur section of South Eastern Railway resumed on Saturday evening after being stalled for 10 hours.

The Eastern Railway has cancelled nine express and four long-distance passenger trains which were scheduled to play on Sunday.

The South Eastern Railway also cancelled one express and some passenger trains slated for the day. Some long-distance passenger trains also suffered the same fate.