Bangalore, Feb. 12: If the call centres had a plan ready to get around the dawn-to-dusk bandh against the Cauvery award, the agitators too had one to foil them.

Pro-Kannada activists waited at several city junctions for BPO cabs and vans late last night. As the vehicles tried to hurry past them, they were chased down and their tyres deflated.

“The moment we turned near Mekhri circle, they flagged us down,” Deepa Raj said. “They didn’t harm us but we had to walk back home.”

This ensured that some of the call centres shut down like the rest of the IT sector, which will work this Saturday to make up for the day’s losses.

The protesters prevented the WTA Sony Ericsson international tennis meet from starting today. Many foreign players are in town though Sania Mirza is scheduled to arrive tomorrow.