AUGUST 6 saw most of the commercial establishments closed. They included shops and banks. Banking services are indispensable in any civilized country. They cannot come to a grinding halt for flimsy reasons. A bandh called by any and every group in this country is hurting our economy because Governments cannot ensure total security even to its own employees, forget about the citizenry. Hence the easy escape route for most institutions is to shut down and sit it out till the bandh hours have ended. Bandh callers test the nerve of the Government and call its bluff all the time. The Supreme Court of India has banned bandhs but the state governments are too weak to implement the apex court directive. Moreover, bandh callers are never arrested even as a pre-emptive step.
If we are to go by appearances then the bandh called by the mine owners Forum is successful on all counts. There were very few vehicles on the road, so much so the traffic cops at many traffic junctions were invisible. The JNNRUM buses were plying but with very scanty passengers. Generally, non-tribal traders face the brunt of bandh callers so it is understandable if they keep their shutters down because of the fear of reprisal. But what about the local shop owners and merchants? Are they all in support of the bandh and therefore against the NGT ban on coal mining. Or it simply apathy? Unlike other occasions the Meghalaya Government has not given a call to its employees to attend office or face action. Nor has it goaded the citizens, as it usually does, to oppose the bandh. What does this imply? It means the Government too is tacitly supporting the bandh so that the message goes to the NGT that life has come to a standstill in Meghalaya. It’s an indirect way of putting pressure on the NGT. An otherwise assertive Chief Secretary too has been muted this time around. Sometimes silence speaks louder than words. The writing on the wall is clear. The coal mafia has complete grip on the Government and by extension the citizenry too.
