Hubballi/Dharwad: The bandh call given by Congress and other opposition parties to protest the rising fuel prices was a success in Hubballi-Dharwad and other parts of North Karnataka on Monday. As declared by the respective district administrations, educational institutions were shut in Dharwad and other districts.Normal life was affected in Hubballi and Dharwad as autorickshaws and buses stayed off the road till the evening. Commercial establishments on the main streets remained closed while major areas like KC Circle, Koppikar Road and Station Road in the city wore a deserted look. Though government offices functioned as usual, the number of visitors to these places was less.The protesters forcefully closed petty shops near KC Circle and IB Road. Congress and BJP workers were in a heated argument at a commercial complex on Station Road. The verbal clash started when BJP workers countered the pro-Congress and anti-Modi slogans at the complex. However, police intervened to pacify them.Congress workers prepared tea by lighting firewood on the road to protest the fuel price hike. Some protesters pulled vehicles using ropes instead of driving them and took out a procession of LPG cylinder.JD(S) workers protested at Dharwad MP Pralhad Joshi’s office. BJP members protested at the Suburban police station, demanding the arrest of JD(S) members, including City president Rajanna Koravi for allegedly using unparliamentary words against Joshi and trying to barge into the MP’s residence.Congress leaders Altaf Halwoor, MLA Prasad Abbayya, former minister A M Hindasgeri and former MP I G Sanadi from the Congress, along with MLA N H Konaraddi were present.The bandh was total in Dharwad city with business establishments, petrol bunks and theatres remaining shut. Business hubs like the Super Market, Nehru Market and Subhash Road wore a deserted look. The protests began as early as 7am. The Congress and JD(S) workers gathered at Jubilee Circle, where they blocked the road and staged a sit-in protest. Their attempt to burn tyre on the road was foiled after environmentalists appealed them not to cause pollution.In Haveri , vehicular movement came to a halt and shops were closed in the main market areas. Kannada Rakshana Vedike activists forcibly shut shops.Busy streets like PB Road and Mandipet wore a deserted look as educational institutions and commercial establishments were closed in Davanagere . The bandh was peaceful in Chitradurga district and received a good response in Kalaburagi where MP Mallikarjun Kharge took part in a protest.Congress, JD(S), and left organisations staged separate protests in Ballari district where the bandh was success and peaceful. The Congress organized bullock cart and bike rally in Ballari.However, the bandh evoked a mixed response in Vijayapura where theatres, vegetable markets and petrol bunks did not operate. The Congress took out a procession and organized bullock cart and tonga rally in the city. SUCI also took out a rally through the main streets and pro-Kannada organizations organised a bicycle rally in the city.

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