TURA: Hundreds of shops in Tura municipality opened up for business on Saturday despite a boycott call given by unknown groups asking them to down shutters for three days as part of the opposition to the current GHADC elections.
Credit goes to the Current chief executive officer of Tura Municipal Board (TMB), Zenithsky J Sangma, for ensuring a normal business day despite the boycott call. Sangma went about the town encouraging shopkeepers, at times wielding the legal stick, to ensure they opened for trade so that the common people could purchase necessary items for the weekend.
Successive district administrations and deputy commissioners’ efforts to thwart boycott calls have previously met with little or no response from traders and the general public.
This time, the CEO pointed out to traders that those who did not lift their shutters could face a legal battle in court since the High Court of Meghalaya had recently banned all forms of protest and closure which hampered normal life.
The last time traders’ downed shutters were on August 14-15, this year, over a GNLA bandh.
As a result of their closure, the municipal board had moved for legal action and traders were now compelled to file affidavits in court giving reason for doing so.
