The padlocked shutter of a shop in Burrabazar to mark the BJP-VHP bandh on Thursday. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya

A bandh called by the BJP-Vishwa Hindu Parishad combine that not many people in Calcutta knew about brought business to a standstill in Burrabazar on Thursday.

As many as 90 per cent of the traders operating out of the city’s commercial hub kept shutters down from morning till 1pm.

It was only late in the afternoon that some traders opened their shops along Mahatma Gandhi Road. The core business area of Burrabazar remained closed.

The BJP-VHP shutdown was over the Amarnath shrine land-transfer dispute in Jammu and Kashmir.

“The bandh has been 100 per cent successful in Burrabazar. Many traders in other areas supported the bandh by suspending business. We are surprised by the support we have got,” said BJP councillor Meena Devi Purohit.

Purohit led a procession in the morning to mobilise opinion against the land transfer.

The BJP’s presence in the city is limited to two wards and the VHP has only a few members. But Burrabazar has traditionally been a stronghold of both the BJP and the VHP.

A spokesperson for the combine said nobody was forced to shut shop. “On Wednesday, our workers went around on autorickshaws and requested everybody to keep their businesses closed and show solidarity over the Amarnath issue. People kept their shops shut and supported us,” said Suman Toshniwal, the president of Durga Vahini, the VHP’s women’s wing.

Sutapatti, Lohapatti, Cheenipatti, Sonapatti, Raja Katra, Sadasukh Katra, Ashok Katra, Posta and Satya Narayan Park AC Market wore a deserted look, but it was business as usual in the rest of city.

There are around 75,000 traders in Burrabazar and daily transactions touch Rs 500 crore on an average.