Darjeeling’s Chowkbazar on Wednesday morning. Picture by Suman Tamang

Darjeeling, May 7: The Mall looked beautiful minus the din and pony dung today.

So what if Darjeeling wore a bandh look with no shops — not even those selling paan — open, the taxi stands and tea gardens deserted and offices and schools shut.

Tourists, keen to make the most of long stretches of unpopulated roads, outnumbered local residents.

The hill people descended on Siliguri in hordes this morning, leaving behind the quiet town that Darjeeling once was.

There was a rush to catch the toy train to Ghoom, the sleepy little station among the highest in the world.

The demand for tickets was such that the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway had to attach three bogies to the train that usually has two compartments.

All tourists who were supposed to leave Darjeeling today had moved out last evening.

“We had apprised the tourists about the expected situation. Only tourists bound for Gangtok stayed back and vehicles from Sikkim had been booked for them,” said Naresh Yonzone, an executive of Hotel Anand Palace.

Those supposed to check in today had not made it to the town till late evening.

Many tourists wondered how a town could empty out for a rally. “People are telling me that there is no bandh here, but everything is closed. It is amazing that an entire town has emptied just for a political meeting,” said Rajeev Mehta, from Delhi.