The 'Bharat Bandh' call given by some upper caste organisations and supported by OBC outfits against the amended SC/ST Act Thursday evoked a strong response in Madhya Pradesh even as the day largely passed off peacefully.
A majority of private schools, petrol pumps, markets and business establishments in most parts of the state remained shut, police said.
Protests were witnessed in Rewa, Satna, Chhatarpur and Ashoknagar districts while incidents of stone-pelting were reported from some places, they said. Police said they had to lob teargas shells at Aron in Guna district to disperse the protesters.
A number of arrests were made in some districts but the police could not give the exact number of those held.
The bandh was called against the amendment carried out by the Parliament to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act after some of its provisions were read down by the Supreme Court.
Brahma Samagam Sawarna Jankalyan Sangathan national president Dharmendra Sharma said about 150 organisations of upper castes and OBCs participated in the bandh.
The shutdown was effective in most the state's cities, including capital Bhopal, Katni, Vidisha, Sehore, Dewas, Indore, Gwalior, Jhabua, Mandsaur, Chhattarpur, Sagar and Ujjain, he said.
"We got an overwhelming response to our 'Bharat bandh' call," Sharma claimed.
A senior police official said, "In Rewa, Satna and Chhatarpur districts, thousands of protesters took to the streets. In Shadora area of Ashok Nagar district, some protesters squatted on the railway tracks, while in Rewa they tried to stop a train."
Tyres were set afire at some places in Rewa and Satna district. In rural parts of Ujjain, members of the Dalit community and the upper castes came face to face, the official said.
"Stone pelting was reported at some places in the state and police had to lathi-charge the protesters. At Aron in Guna district, police had to lob teargas shells to disperse the unruly mob," he added.
According to the official, some people tried to storm into Rewa district police control room, although their attempts were thwarted by the police. The protest did not evoke much response in tribal dominated districts, he added.
Inspector General of Police (IG-Intelligence) Makrand Deuskar said they were yet to work out the exact number of arrested protesters.
The bandh was by and large peaceful, he said.
In Khandwa district, members of Samanya Pichda evam Alpsankhyak Varg (SAPAKS) Samaj, a newly formed political outfit, staged protests in front of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The CM later reached out to them and received their memorandum.
"In most cities, the protesters belonging to different organisations took out rallies wearing black clothes and submitted the memorandum to authorities," Sharma said.
The markets in Indore remained shut in view of the bandh.
Talking to PTI, Indore's Ahilya Chambers of Commerce and Industries' chairman, Ramesh Khandelwal, said 110 traders' bodies extended their support to the bandh.
Several other organisations also staged protests in different parts of Indore.
"The bandh passed off peacefully and no untoward incident took place," Indore Deputy Inspector General (DIG) H C Mishra said.
Rewa SP Sushant Saxena said force was used to disperse stone pelting protesters at the city railway station. He said three persons were arrested in this connection.
In Bhind district, police detained Pushpendra Singh, son of BJP MLA Narendra Singh Kushwaha, while he was leading a protest in violation of prohibitive orders under CrPC section 144, Additional Superintendent of Police Gurukaran Singh said.
Several people in Gwalior, Bhopal, Vidisha and other cities were seen sporting caps and T-shirts with 'Main hoon mai ka lal' (I am my mother's son) written on them. These words apparently referred to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's past statement- 'Hamare rahte koi mai ka lal aarakshan khatam nahi kar sakta' (No one can dare to end the reservation as long as I am the chief minister).
Earlier, in Khandwa, Chouhan appealed to the people saying, "Madhya Pradesh is an island of peace. I pray that we all progress and no one should try to disrupt peace in the state. I am available for everyone...for each citizen."
"The door of the chief minister and his heart is open for all. I appeal to everyone to ensure that law and order situation remains peaceful in the state and if there is anything they want to say, they should say it in a peaceful manner," he said in the morning.
Interestingly, a flower shop owned by Chouhan's son, Kartikey, in Bhopal also remained shut.
Earlier this year, the apex court had removed the strict provision of mandatory arrests under the Act. This decision triggered protests by Scheduled Castes organisations, forcing the Centre to bring an amendment to the Act during the Monsoon Session to overrule the SC order.
The Gwalior-Chambal region in Madhya Pradesh had witnessed a violence on April 2 this year during the 'Bharat bandh' called by Dalit groups. Now, the upper caste organisations are staging protests against the amendments to the Act.
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