 "Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar talks to media after all parties meeting on liquor prohibition at Vidhan Sabha, in Patna")
Barring Kerala and parts of West Bengal, the nationwide protests against note ban being organised by the Opposition on November 28 would not disrupt normal life, with the Congress clarifying there was no call for a Bharat bandh but only marches and rallies across the country.
As many as 14 Opposition parties will hit the streets against the demonetisation on Monday. The CPI-M has called for a complete shutdown.
“We have not given the call for a Bharat bandh. We don’t want to disturb people. This is a misinformation campaign by the Bharatiya Janata Party that the Congress and other parties want to shut down the country. We will instead organise protest rallies across states to highlight public anger against the note ban,” Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said.
However, chinks appeared in the Opposition unity with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar supporting the note ban and the JD(U) deciding to skip the protests in Bihar.
The JD(U), Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress are part of the ruling alliance in Bihar. Sources said the Congress and RJD would go ahead with their protests.
Playing down the development, Jairam Ramesh said JD(U) Rajya Sabha member Sharad Yadav was with the other Opposition parties over the issue.
Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee, who took the lead in attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the note ban, will lead a rally in Kolkata on Monday and hold similar protests in Lucknow on November 29. The Congress and the CPI-M would hold separate rallies in Kolkata.
In Delhi, the state Congress headed by Ajay Maken will take out a protest march from Mandi House to Parliament Street in the evening beating steel plates used in household kitchens to wake up a “deaf” government.
The Left parties will take out a procession and hold public meeting on Monday.
To protest against demonetisation and its impact on the people, leaders of these parties will march from Mandi House to Jantar Mantar and hold a rally there.
In Mumbai, the city Congress unit, headed by Sanjay Nirupam, will take out a protest march. The unit will organise such protests in all districts. Nationalist Congress Party workers will also hit the streets.
In Uttar Pradesh, the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party will organise protests while in Delhi, the major focus of the Opposition parties will be Parliament, which is unlikely to function on Monday. The opposition has not allowed Parliament to function over the past week demanding that PM Modi attend the House and explain the note ban.
