‘No road, no toll’: Bhind booths vandalised over road work delay

Bhopal: A protest demanding the widening of the Gwalior-Bhind-Etawah stretch of NH-719 turned tense on Monday, after demonstrators vandalised toll booths at Baretha in Bhind's Malanpur region. Organised under the banner ‘No Road, No Toll', the demonstration started at noon as protesters led by saint Kalidas Maharaj reached the plaza and staged an agitation against toll collection on what they claimed to be a dangerously dilapidated highway.Soon as the protest erupted, some demonstrators allegedly damaged toll booth equipment, claiming that toll charges were still being deducted through FASTag scanners despite announcements that collections had been suspended for the day.As word of the demonstration got out, police teams were scrambled to the plaza to bring the situation under control, even as crowds gathered and tensions escalated. Protesters alleged that vehicles passing through the toll plaza continued to be charged electronically, driving anger among motorists and participants in the agitation. They alleged that money was being automatically deducted from their FASTag accounts, even as toll staff claimed that the charges had been waived.The protest was addressed by Congress's rural district president, Ramshresh Baghel, who accused the BJP govt of ignoring repeated demands for improving the highway. He alleged that the administration was "turning a blind eye to fatalities occurring on this road," claiming frequent accidents had claimed many lives.Amid escalating tensions, assembly speaker Narendra Singh Tomar also reached the site and met the protesting saints, assuring them that the government supported the demand for widening the highway.During the agitation, Shri Krishna Pilot Baba of Kathma Ashram performed ‘Dhuni Ramaana', a protest ritual marked by lighting a sacred fire. However, the agitation also exposed a split in the seer community, as Sant Samiti state president Ramdas Maharaj claimed that the protest was postponed, while district president Kalidas Maharaj insisted it would proceed.A delegation of seers had met Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari about 10 months ago, during which they said the latter assured that widening work on the highway would begin within six months.