*Patna (IANS): *Thousands of Dalit members on Monday staged protests across
Bihar on Monday against the dilution of the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities
Act, disrupting rail and road traffic, police said.
With posters, banners, and flags, supporters of the Bhim Army and other
Dalit organizations, halted over a dozen long-distance trains, and as a
result, passengers were stranded at Patna, Gaya, Jehanabad, Bhagalpur, Ara,
Darbhanga, Araria, Nalanda and Hajipur railway stations.
“Train services have been badly disrupted due to the protest, leaving
hundreds stranded at railway stations,” an East Central Railway official
told IANS over the phone from Hajipur, the zonal headquarters.
At some places, the protesters have also blocked national and state
highways.
In Patna, hundreds of Bhim Army workers took to the streets to protest and
enforce a shutdown.
“In several localities in Patna, supporters of the Bhim Army forced shops
to close and blocked roads by burning tires,” a district police official
said.
According to reports, the protests were supported by the opposition
Rashtriya Janata Dal and left parties.
Of Bihar’s total 10.5 crore population, scheduled castes account for 15.5
lakhs.
