A complete bandh was observed across the Doaba region on Friday on a call given by the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha in support of the release of Bandi Singhs.Highways connecting Jalandhar with Amritsar, Hoshiarpur, Ludhiana, Pathankot and Kapurthala remained blocked, with supporters of the morcha sitting in the middle of the roads. All private educational institutes remained shut. Most market associations announced to remain shut till 2 pm.Transport system also remained paralysed as buses went off road. Even bikers from Phagwara, which is barely 18 km from the city, also faced problems in reaching Jalandhar. A government employee residing in Phagwara said, “Since buses were off road, I started from my place on bike. Since all highways and even internal roads through Jalandhar Cantonment remained blocked, I had to drive through an alley of narrow lanes to reach my office in Jalandhar. It took me an hour to cover the 25-minute distance.”Government schools were open but the attendance was recorded to be below 5 per cent. A government school on Ladowali Road, which has 1,500 students on roll, had seen the attendance of just 45 students.”As the day started and some videos of protest by Sikh activists emerged, the parents of 25 students came and picked them. Since the atmosphere outside was quite stressful, we chose to keep the main gate closed from inside as a safety measure”, said a teacher.In Jalandhar, the main centre where leaders of all Sikh organisations converged turned out to be Guru Nanak Mission Chowk. Leaders of the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha, Awaaz-e-Qaum, Shiromani Akali Dal, Sikh Talmel Committee, nihang bodies and other Sikh organisations sat on a dharna in the middle of the road intersection and ensured that the traffic did not pass through. A jatha from Guru Nanak Mission Gurdwara performed kirtan in the middle of the road as mattresses were laid for everyone to squat and listen to the religious hymns.Speeches were delivered with activists expressing their anger against the BJP-led Centre. The protesters raised slogan, “Narendra Modi, Panth virodhi”. SAD leaders, including Iqbal Singh Dhindsa, Harjaap Singh Sangha and Charanjiv Singh Lalli and Congress councillor Paramjot Singh Sherry Chadha, were among those who took part in the sit-in.Pal Singh France of the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha and Manjit Singh Kartarpur of the Awaaz-e-Qaum expressed anger against the state government and Centre for not releasing the Sikh prisoners even decades after completion of their jail term. “This is the violation of human rights. The AAP government is also indulging in lip service. There is a lot of difference in what its leaders say and how they put things in writing to the Centre”, they said.Jalandhar City and Rural Police remained on toes since the morning to ensure that the bandh passed off peacefully. Multiple nakas were laid across all major intersections and ahead of all blockades. Incidents of altercation between commuters and Sikh activists were also reported. There were incidents of forcible shutting down of showrooms, shops and milk bars in the city.————–Box- Attendance plungesGovt school at Ladowali Road with 1,500 students recorded attendance of only 45.Some parents picked up children after protests intensified.Schools kept gates closed as a precautionary measure.