New Delhi: A photo of a man dressed up like Prime Minister Narendra Modi and going around on a bullock cart asking people whether petrol prices have come down or not is going viral recently. The man is reportedly a Congress activist from Odisha who resorted to this unique way of protesting against fuel price rise.
The protest was witnessed in Umerkote town in Nabarangpur district during the Congress’s six-hour state-wide bandh against fuel price rise. Loudspeakers in the Congress rally blared the recorded question from an old speech of PM Modi and the man with white hair and beard enacted it by lip-syncing along with hand gestures.
This unique way of protest amused residents of places through which the rally traversed. The district witnessed a complete bandh as a large number of Congress workers led by former parliamentarian Pradip Majhi blocked roads. All shops, schools and colleges were shut and vehicles remained off the roads in the district.
Congress workers also adopted ‘Gandhigiri’ as they offered chocolates to people who came out on the streets of Cuttack on their private vehicles during the bandh hours. Party activists also blocked national highways and other key roads in various parts of the state, including Bhubaneswar, leading to traffic jams.
As fuel prices climbed again for the eighth consecutive day reaching new highs on February 16 in cities across the country, various opposition parties and leaders have slammed the government at the Centre over the issue.