Kendrapara: Life came to a standstill in Kendrapara district starting from the morning today as Rashtriya Surakhya Manch observed a 12-hour bandh protesting a dispute between two communities during Netaji birthday celebration yesterday.
While, schools and colleges remained closed starting from morning 6 am, shops and other business establishments in Kendrapara town also stayed off business in view of the bandh call.
Yesterday, people of a particular community celebrated the birthdays of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and Veer Surendra Sai at Saraswati Sishu Vidya Mandir in Kendrapara town yesterday and organised a rally. As they tried to hold a public meeting at Kendrapara Government High School ground later allegedly without prior permission from the administration, people from another community objected it and a communal flare up took place.
Later, separate motorcycle rallies were conducted in the town by both the communities following which District Collector clamped an indefinite curfew under Section-144, to maintain law and order situation.
Similarly, Internet service has been stopped in the town and 10 platoons of police force along with three platoons of Odisha Swift Action Force deployed in the communally sensitive areas of the town, informed district administration.