Puri: Hundreds of devotees and tourists had a harrowing time due to the 12-hour bandh called by socio-cultural organisation Sri Jagannath Sena Wednesday.
The devotees and tourists faced loads of difficulties as most of them were unaware of the bandh call, sources said.
Sources claimed that hundreds of devotees were stranded at Srimandir from 8am to 4pm due to large-scale violence near the shrine and on the Grand Road.
The devotees came out of Srimandir only after the security forces deployed there dispersed the angry mob.
“We kept ourselves confined to Srimandir after witnessing large-scale violence outside. I have never seen such violent agitation here,” said Sunil Kathle, a devotee from Pune in Maharashtra.
Similarly, many tourists and passengers were seen waiting at the city bus stand as private bus service from Puri to other cities was cancelled due to the agitation.
Tourists were forced to walk to Malatipatpur bus stand on the city outskirts as auto-rickshaws were off the roads during the bandh. Similarly, many rail travelers faced problems to reach their destinations due to unavailability of auto-rickshaws at city railway station.
“I had no other option but to walk to reach a hotel near the beach as I could not get any vehicle at the railway station,” said Sujit Barman, a tourist from Maharashtra.
