Toll gate protests: Mock funeral held against “NHAI loot” at Mukka

Suratkal: The protests at the Highway tollgate at NITK continued on Friday. “Apatbandhava” Asif, who has been protesting for stopping the toll collection at Mukka toll gate, held a “mock funeral”.

Asif was seen lying motionless in the scorching sun with his hands and feet tied for more than an hour, silently expressing outrage at the toll gate “thuggery.”

Asif is finding ingenious ways to attract attention to the protest. On Thursday, Asif built himself a mud pond at the toll gate and took a mud bath as a way of protest. It remains to be seen what he will do tomorrow.

The unique protest has certainly gotten popular as days progress. It gained a lot of traction ever since it started a week ago. Several local organizations and the public at large are giving moral support to the protests.

Toll being collected at Mukka and Hejamadi, even though both are only a few kilometers apart has angered the locals. Repeated petitions to the NHAI and the central government have fallen on deaf ears, many locals opined.

Asif has claimed that toll staff is not only looting people but also indulging in hooliganism against motorists. He has vowed not to stop the agitation unless the injustice is stopped.