Bengaluru swings between delight and disruptions amid PM Modi's roadshow

The first day of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s roadshow saw thousands of people gathering on the streets to witness the convoy wading through the southern, western, and northwestern parts of the city.

The city’s traffic and law enforcement police, stationed at various points along the roadshow route, were not only managing the crowd but also responsible for creating diversions for public vehicles as and when necessary.

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The Bengaluru Traffic Police made sure to clear barricades and allow traffic movement through the roads that were initially cordoned off for the convoy’s passage. Several eateries and stores along the way were closed in the morning, causing delays of one-and-a-half to two hours for people who ordered food through food aggregators. “We ordered breakfast around 10.30 am, and the food arrived post-lunch,” said Narendra S, a resident of Jayanagar.

The manager at Mayuri, a restaurant on the 24th main road in JP Nagar, said they closed their restaurant last evening. “It was a little difficult for us to move around in the morning, but we managed at the restaurant since we only open at 12 pm,” he said.

Raja, the manager of Eat Raja, mentioned that BBMP officials and police personnel visited their store on Friday evening to check the CCTVs in the area and clear the footpaths. “They put up barricades outside our store and instructed us to keep our shutters down until 2 pm on Saturday,” he said.

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Curious onlookers climbed buildings and stood on their balconies to witness the convoy. Prakash, a resident of Banashankari who witnessed the roadshow at the South End Circle, said that several security vehicles passed by the crowd to inspect the roads before the PM’s convoy arrived. “Chants of Prime Minister Modi and ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ reverberated in the atmosphere. People from all walks of life were there,” he said. “The roadshow was electric. I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Aman Jain, a resident of Bull Temple Road. However, he expressed disappointment at the BBMP cutting trees in preparation for the roadshow and the floral waste strewn on the roads after the convoy passed through.

Emotional turmoil

However, several residents expressed anger and frustration due to the roadshow arrangements that blocked several routes. The movement of office-goers and regular commuters was affected as several buses were delayed. “BMTC changed their routes, and we were unaware of this. Looking for an alternative mode of transport was troublesome at the last minute,” said Gururaj, an IT professional.

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Residents in JP Nagar noted the lack of police personnel on arterial roads and barricades on the main road, resulting in traffic congestion for a few minutes. One man, trying to get his mother to the hospital, was caught in traffic in JP Nagar. Manjula Desai, a naturalist, mentioned that the BBMP chopped down some trees on the road outside M N Krishna Rao Park. “They also temporarily fixed roads, covered potholes, and cleaned the 3rd main road in Hanumantha Nagar in anticipation of the convoy, but the routes were changed at the last minute,” she explained.

Mobile phone slip-up

During Modi’s roadshow near Basavanagudi on Saturday afternoon, a woman who was recording the event on her mobile phone accidentally dropped it. Krishnakant P, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South), who was on duty, found it near the barricade and returned it.

“It is not a security lapse as the phone didn’t fall anywhere close to the convoy of the Prime Minister, but near the barricade. It slipped from her hand while she was taking pictures,” said the officer.