The flow of traffic was interrupted several times as protestors time and again came in front of the vehicles and blocked traffic. Former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who was passing by in a car, was also stopped for a while. The protestors including a large number of women and children assembled at the gate of the railway station at 10 a.m -- around the time the Shatabdi Express arrives. They raised slogans and waved banners, condemning the administration for ordering the demolitions of 50-odd houses at Raipur Kalan on Tuesday last. They also sought compensation for those whose houses were razed and demanded an immediate halt to demolitions.

Police was deployed in full strength to prevent any untoward incident and for regulating traffic. At a few points, traffic near the railway station was diverted, greatly inconveniencing commuters.

The human chain protest was organised by the Gaon Sangharsh Samiti and protesters mainly comprised residents of Raipur Kalan and Daria villages besides activists of certain political parties. On behalf of the Sangharsh Samiti, Panchayat Samiti member Shingara Singh said they feared more demolitions. He also condemned the local MP for not being in town despite all the incidents that took place. Among the protesters was City Mayor Gian Chand Gupta along with other BJP leaders. Gupta said that "the Administration must frame a uniform policy to decide on legal and illegal constructions". "Also, this being a democratic country, the Administration must take into confidence the people's bodies such as Panchayat Samitis before taking any action of this kind," he said.

BJP local unit president Dharam Pal alleged that the UT Administration was "anti-BJP" and sought the transfer of Advisor to UT Administration Jagdish Sagar. "Our party is strictly against demolitions and we won't allow the bureaucracy to rule," he added. He said he was leaving for New Delhi today to take up the matter with the Union Government. Meanwhile, the hunger strike at the Railway Station entered its fifth day today.