Patna: Life in the city was partially hit on Thursday by the bandh called by upper-caste groups against the Centre's recent amendments to restore the stringent provisions of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

Bandh supporters stopped trains at Rajendra Nagar Terminus, burnt tyres on roads and stopped traffic. However, the effect was not as large scale as witnessed in districts such as Ara and Jehanabad, and by noon the protesters in the state capital seemed to have retreated to their homes.

In Patna around 1,000 protestors under the banner of Savarna Sena and Akhil Bhartiya Savarna Morcha organised demonstrations at Dakbunglow Roundabout and Kargil Chowk and blocked the road at New Bypass for over an hour.

Some agitators stopped the Lokmanya Tilak Express at Rajendra Nagar Terminus.

Though no political party openly supported the bandh, the protestors displayed placards against the central government's move to restore the provisions of the SC/ST Act, set tyres ablaze and chanted slogans against Narendra Modi government in various parts of the state.

In Rajeev Nagar, bandh supporters stopped traffic near the railway crossing by placing burning tyres on the road. Commuters bore the brunt.

"I had to go to a private hospital located in Patliputra to get my father operated. But since there was huge traffic we decided to postpone the operation and return home," said Ramash Kumar, a resident of Ashiana Nagar.

Sudhir Kumar, who lives in Kumhrar, said: "We faced trouble due to the agitation on the roads. It took more than one hour to reach my office located on Fraser Road, a journey that normally takes 20 to 25 minutes."

He said that his son Abhinav Kumar, who studies the in DAV BSEB Colony school, was stuck on the road while returning home. Though there was a sizeable police presence on the roads, particularly near the state BJP office, in most cases policemen did not intervene to remove the hurdles created by the bandh supporters and were busy in diverting traffic, said many commuters who were delayed and stuck due to the agitation.

Parties' stand

The political parties were guarded in their response to the bandh, carefully balancing upper-caste concerns while denouncing the vandalism by protesters.

JDU spokesperson Ajay Alok said: "We don't support any caste-based agitation but there should be discussion and debate in Parliament on how the poor people belonging to forward castes would be accommodated. There is no such provision in the Constitution at present."

The RJD criticised the vandalism of bandh supporters.

"Not even SPs (superintendents of police) were spared," said RJD spokesperson Shakti Singh Yadav, adding that the upper castes feel that they have been fooled by the Narendra Modi government.

Congress MLC Prem Chandra Mishra told The Telegraph: "The upper castes also have massive poverty and unemployment; the government should consider their concerns instead of ignoring them."