CHANDIGARH, Aug 9 — The call given by the Haryana Beopar Mandal led by Mr Lakshmi Chand Gupta and the Haryana Pradesh Beopar Mandal led by Mr Bajrang Dass Garg evoked overwhelming response in almost all municipal towns of the state.

However, the state government claimed that the bandh call given by various “self-styled” traders’ associations had failed to evoke any response. The government’s claim seems to be true only in case of small towns and non-municipal towns, where a large number of shops remained opened.

The bandh call was in protest against the introduction of transit challans (ST-38 forms), without which a trader can neither bring in nor send out goods worth more than Rs 10,000, imposition of establishment tax and sales tax on halwais and bakery owners.

The good response to the bandh call in municipal towns is explained by the fact that the establishment tax has been imposed only in these towns and would affect almost all shop-owners, irrespective of the size of their establishments.

The same factor explains the poor response to the bandh call in non-municipal towns.

Interestingly, the establishment tax was first mooted by the Bansi Lal government and Mr Om Prakash Chautala’s INLD had made loud protests against it in support of traders. The tax was never realised. Among the first decisions taken by the Chautala government after it was voted to power in February last, ostensibly to compensate the civic bodies for the loss of octroi, which it had abolished, was to impose the establishment tax along with the introduction of a new formula to assess house tax.

Mr Chautala, however, later deferred the house tax formula and constituted a committee under the chairmanship of the Local Bodies Minister, Mr Subhash Goel, to work out a formula so that the element of arbitrariness is not there while determining tax on a particular property.

But the establishment tax, which affects even the small shopkeepers, continues to be on the statute book.

In Ambala City even the grain market was closed for the day. Mr Sanjeev Garg, Vice-President of the kachha Arhtiya Association, said after the anti-reservation stir in 1990, the grain market shops had downed their shutters for the first time today.

Mr Arun Garg, President of the Ambala district unit of the Haryana Pradesh Beopar Mandal, said the trading community had been hurt by the broken promises of Mr Chautala.

The INLD leaders had promised when he was in opposition to withdraw all those taxes which had been imposed by the Bansi Lal government

to make up the loss caused to the exchequer by the imposition of prohibition. What to talk of withdrawing those taxes, the Chautala government had imposed a fresh dose of taxes. He said the introduction of ST-38 forms would only lead to inspector raj and corruption.

Mr Garg said over the past one year the revenue of the state had shown an enormous increase without the imposition of transit challans.

The bandh call was supported by the Congress and the other Opposition parties. Though the BJP claimed that it was not supporting the bandh, its second rung leaders actively participated in the bandh.

Meanwhile, the office-secretary of the INLD, Mr Dharambir Singh, has expressed his gratitude to the people of the state, especially the traders, for “not” responding to the bandh call given by “some disgruntled opposition parties”.

The response to the bandh call is an indication of the fact that the labour put by Mr Chautala in the past nine years to win the confidence of the trading community so that to expand the base of his party have come to naught.

SONEPAT: The one-day state wide bandh observed against the imposition of ST Form 38 and other taxes passed off peacefully in the city. However, traders supporting and those against this bandh tried to mobilise traders in their favour.

The district and police authorities had made tight security arrangements in view of Mr Om Parkash Chautala’s visit to the city today.

The Congress, the Shiv Sena and some other parties had supported the bandh but the BJP was a divided house on this issue. The INLD and its other allies opposed the bandh call and described it as an attempt to overthrow the Chautala government.

Many main markets remained closed. However, the Subzi Mandi and some other markets remained opened. Schools and colleges functioned normally. Train and bus services were normal. The bandh also failed to disrupt the normal life with traffic plying smoothly and attendance in government and private offices normal. All the industrial units functioned as usual.

FATEHABAD: The bandh call given by various traders associations of the state evoked a mixed response here on Wednesday. While shops and business establishments in the main markets of Fatehabad remained closed, the bandh call did not have any impact on the traders in grain and vegetable markets.

REWARI: In response to a joint call of the Haryana Beopar Mandal headed by Mr Lakhmi Chand Gupta and the Haryana Pradesh Beopar led by Mr Bajrang Das Garg, traders and shopkeepers of the town in all the main markets here observed a near total bandh on Wednesday.

YAMUNANAGAR: Call for Haryana bandh evoked a mixed response in the city and Jagadhri on Wednesday.

Almost all industrial units, rice shellers, plywood units, utensil units, chemists, doctors, daily wage earners and other commercial activities function normally. All essential services functioned normally. No untoward incident was reported from any part of the district.

KAITHAL: The bandh call evoked good response in the town on Wednesday, as the main markets, including Main Bazaar, Talai Bazaar, Saroja Bazaar, Railway Road, Bhagat Singh Chowk, Chhoh Mandi, Janta Market, Timber Market, Grain Markets, Chatrawas Road and Old Subzi Mandi remained totally closed and the activists of the Beopar Mandal organised a procession in support of the bandh.

However, some shops on Ambala Road, Dhand Road and near bus stand remained opened.

KURUKSHETRA: A BJP leader, Mr Krishan Bajaj, sustained head injuries when he was attacked, allegedly by some INLD workers, opposite Mohan Theatre here on Wednesday during the bandh.

The New Vegetable Market commission agents observed a complete bandh, but, some INLD workers, disappointed over the total bandh, got help from the local market committee officials and got a bag of onions auctioned to set an example for other commission agents to follow by starting their respective business.

However, other commission agents, instead of opening their shops, refused to oblige INLD workers as well as the local market committee officials, who, allegedly, threatened to cancel their respective vegetable licences, if they (commission agents) did not open their shops.