Stray incidents of violence and disruption of train services marked the Bihar bandh called by the National Democratic Alliance and Lok Janshakti Party on Tuesday to protest against the removal of D P Ojha as director general of police.
BJP workers smashed windscreens and deflated tyres of a few vehicles in Patna to enforce the bandh. Police resorted to a lathicharge to disperse them at a few places.
Several trains under Danapur and Samastipur divisions of East Central Railway were stranded at different places, railway sources said.
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Shops and business establishments in major thoroughfares of the capital remained closed, but those in residential areas functioned normally. Vehicular traffic was marginally hit and all private schools were closed as a precautionary measure.
Essential services have been exempted from the purview of the bandh, NDA state convener Nand Kishore Yadav had said earlier.
Patna University postponed the examination of industrial safety management scheduled for Tuesday. Attendance in state and central government undertakings was normal, Inspector General of Police (Patna zone) A C Verma said. Tight security measures had been taken across the state to prevent any untoward incident.
Bihar NDA convener Nand Kishore Yadav, state BJP president Gopal Narain Singh, Leader of the Opposition Sushil Kumar Modi, party's chief whip in the state assembly Navin Kishore Prasad Sinha, LJP state president Narendra Singh were among 500 bandh supporters detained in Patna.
Reports from various districts indicated that the bandh evoked a mixed response.
Bandh supporters obstructed movement of trains at Hathidah Station in Patna district and Janakpur Road Station in Sitamarhi district for some time, but traffic resumed after police intervention.
In Gaya, people belonging to two communities exploded bombs and indulged in stone-throwing damaging the official vehicle of district Superintendent of Police Sanjay Singh, police said.
In Siwan, the hometown of controversial ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Mohammed Shahabuddin, the bandh had little effect while in Muzaffarpur, Jehanabad and Begusarai it evoked good response.
Around 650 bandh supporters were held in Patna, Muzaffarpur, Begusarai and Jehanabad while in Muzaffarpur, about 20 bandh supporters were injured in a police lathicharge.
