- विज्ञापन -
Jaipur: Ajmer was engulfed in chaos on Saturday as angry lawyers, protesting the death of senior advocate Purushottam Jakhetia, vandalized several locations including City Square, Miraj Mall, and other markets. The protest was triggered by Jakhetia’s death after he was attacked following an argument over loud music in Pushkar.
Lawyers had called for a bandh in protest, and several gathered outside the court in the morning. Ajmer Bar Association President Ashok Singh Rawat urged them to ensure the shutdown remained “peaceful.” However, tensions escalated near Ajmer Railway Station when protesting lawyers, upset by the presence of open shops and hotels, began smashing shop grills and throwing goods onto the streets.
Despite some lawyers attempting to de-escalate the situation, the unrest spread to markets in Pushkar and Nasirabad, which were completely shut in solidarity with the protest. Markets in Ajmer, Pushkar, Nasirabad, and Beawar also closed, with exceptions for medical stores, schools, and petrol stations.
Protesting lawyers also targeted the vegetable market on Beawar Road, forcing shopkeepers to close. They stormed liquor shops on Pushkar Road and Cine World in Ajmer, where they assaulted a liquor shop operator and a youth consuming alcohol. Additionally, they forcibly stopped a tempo passing through Ramganj Square, making passengers disembark.
Jakhetia’s death occurred on March 2, after he confronted a group of youths playing loud music in their car near a liquor shop on Budha Pushkar Road. The youths, who were reportedly intoxicated, attacked him with sticks, resulting in severe head injuries. Jakhetia later died in the hospital. Police have filed a case against the DJ operator and unidentified assailants based on a report from Jakhetia’s nephew, Ankush.
This marks the second citywide shutdown in a week, as Ajmer had also been closed on March 1 in protest against the Bijaynagar gangrape-blackmail case.
