Date:14/08/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/14/stories/2008081459591200.htm

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VHP chakka jam on Amarnath issue

Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Wednesday morning organised a chakka jam agitation demanding allocation of land to the Amarnath Shrine Board.

Heavy rain in western and central India, together with the agitation by thousands of VHP activists, brought traffic to a standstill in several cities across the country. According to agency reports two persons died — one in Ambala and the other in Kanpur — having been held up, on their way to hospitals, in the protest.

Unfortunate

While supporting the VHP agitation, Bharatiya Janata Party leader M. Venkaiah Naidu said the two deaths were “unfortunate.” The BJP held demonstrations, on its own, in different State capitals with its leaders courting arrest.

Trains were stopped in several places in Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra for periods ranging from 30 to 120 minutes. In the National Capital Region, the chakka jam caused traffic snarls at 20 important intersections.

In most places, the agitation passed off peacefully. The activists used burning tyres to disrupt traffic at intersections and highways.

The VHP claimed that the chakka jam brought traffic to a grinding halt from 9 to 11 a.m. in 10,000 places throughout the country, including 1,000 places in Uttar Pradesh and 1,500 in Rajasthan.

VHP leader Pravin Togadia, however, warned that the agitation could take an “aggressive turn” if the Centre did not concede the demand for land for the Amarnath Shrine Board.