Right from the time the Citizenship (Amendment) Act was passed by Parliament and the President Ram Nath Kovind gave his assent to the amendment Bill, there has been umpteen protests from various political and community factions and parties, thanks to some political leaders and parties who misinterpreted the Act and instilled wrong notions in the people just for the sake of vote bank and for their vested interest. Things have turned violent as the youth from some universities too started getting involved in the protests and processions.
Meetings and political processions have become a daily routine in almost every town and city of the nation and in places like Kerala and West Bengal things have become worse as these have started to cause inexplicable problems to the common man. Processions and rallies have become a nightmare for the citizens and in cities like Kerala’s Kannur which is a highly political and volatile region, such processions and rallies have started to make life terrible and severe.
Processions are conducted in many such towns during peak hours in the evening completely disrupting smooth traffic and public life. Cities and towns witness at least five to six processions daily, most of which occur in the evenings and sometimes in the mornings and at noon according to the wish and will of the people behind the rallies. This results in heavy traffic- jams with vehicles stranded in long queues. Normally, during such processions, vehicle owners try to take a ‘short cut’ creating more traffic problems. By the time the procession reaches its destination or meeting place, heavy traffic congestion’s are created throughout the route covered.
Hapless passers-by get stranded on either side of the road unable to cross the procession. Ambulances, businessmen, vehicles heading to railway stations, airports, hospitals and other places get caught in processions which are sometimes long and sometimes short. Even a handful of political activists marching on the main road create untold misery to the people.
If the political neta’s who are behind these processions think that it is their ‘right’ to show their ‘might’ on the road by conducting such demonstrations, then they are wrong for they don’t have the right to disrupt smooth public life and let them realise that instead of creating an impression in the heart of the people, they are only inviting hatred, wrath and aversion of the people. It is high time the authorities concerned, political organisations and factions rethink and put an end to this perennial problem.
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
