PUNE: Victory celebrations after the Pune Municipal Corporation election results on Friday disrupted the calm of otherwise peaceful neighbourhoods, with roaring bike rallies, deafening firecrackers and road blockages bringing several parts of the city to a standstill, leaving residents and commuters frustrated late into the night.The junction near the petrol pump on FC Road was completely blocked. “Traffic had come to a halt because people were too afraid to move ahead while firecrackers were being set off. It was dangerous. One (firecracker) could easily have exploded under a bus or car. We elect representatives to resolve civic issues, yet instead we had to deal with noise and air pollution, traffic chaos and a sleepless night,” resident Anmol Patil said.
A commuter heading towards Lohegaon said traffic crawled on National Highway-753F near Sangamwadi. “A few kilometres after Sangamwadi, the road was completely blocked due to a rally with loud music. Even though traffic police were present, vehicles did not move for nearly 20 minutes. I reached home much later than usual,” he said.In Vimannagar, the residents said celebrations carried on past midnight. Resident Deepa Haridasan said firecrackers were set off around 1.40am near the CCD-to-Gangapuram lane. “For 15-20 minutes, crackers kept going off continuously. It was horrible. I completely lost my sleep and couldn’t rest afterward,” she said, adding that the police arrived shortly after.“Five minutes after the crackers stopped, I heard police patrolling, probably after someone complained. But once they left, bikers returned. Earlier in the evening too, a large rally passed our society, many smeared with gulal.
Vehicles were forced to halt and traffic backed up,” she said.At Salunke Vihar Road, a sudden victory procession during late evening hours brought traffic to a standstill, leaving hundreds of motorists — many of whom had voted — stuck for 45 to 50 minutes. Madhukar Joshi, returning home from work, said, “This is outrageous. How did they suddenly spill onto the streets bursting crackers, shouting slogans and throwing colours? Regardless of who wins, it’s us who suffer.
For 50 minutes I was stranded inhaling smoke and dust even though my home was just a stone’s throw away.
“Two-wheeler rider Mohammad Ateeq Shaikh was startled after being hit by a firecracker splinter. “We voted for them hoping they would maintain order. Celebrating a win is fine, but harassing the very people who voted for them is unacceptable. I had to reach home on time with medicines for my ailing wife but was helplessly stuck,” said the 65-year-old NIBM Road resident.Rahmat Khatoon, who lives on Salunke Vihar Road and was driving her son home from tuitions, was equally upset. “Because of the smoke and dust, my son began crying. The whole group simply didn’t care. Many on bikes with modified silencers were deliberately making noise. For the entire 45 minutes, we just stood there, facing harassment and inconvenience,” she told TOI.
