The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has called for a one-day ‘Maharashtra bandh’ on August 24 to protest the alleged sexual assault on two young women at a school in Badlapur in Thane district. The decision was taken by various MVA allies – the Congress, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (Uttar Pradesh) and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) – after a meeting in Mumbai. State opposition leader Vijay Wadettiwar said all MVA allies will participate in the bandh on August 24.
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Shiv Sena (Uttar Pradesh) leader Uddhav Thackeray today said that many people have started to feel that girls are not safe in schools. Not just the Mahavikas Aghadi but all citizens will participate in tomorrow’s bandh. The bandh will continue till 2 pm. Bus and train services should also be closed during tomorrow’s bandh. He appealed that you may belong to any religion or caste, but make this bandh successful for the safety of your daughters and sisters.
Meanwhile, the police arrested a school attendant for allegedly sexually abusing two kindergarten students at a school in Badlapur on August 17. According to the complaint, he misbehaved with the girls in the school toilet, an official said. Reacting to the latest development, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said people in Maharashtra are upset and an FIR has been filed against the protesters.
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What will remain open, what will be closed
Since the Maharashtra government has not given any notification regarding school closures, they will function as usual and will not remain shut. However, other educational institutions that are usually closed on Saturdays will remain shut. Even though the opposition has called for a Maharashtra bandh, the state government has not supported it and has not issued any notification regarding the closure of buses and metro. Therefore, buses and metro in Mumbai and elsewhere are expected to run as usual. As per RBI bank holiday guidelines, banks will remain closed this Saturday, August 24, as it is the fourth Saturday of the month. However, banks are not closed due to the Maharashtra bandh.
