Arunachal Pradesh: A 12-hour shutdown brought life to a standstill across Arunachal Pradesh’s Capital Complex on Tuesday. Itanagar, Naharlagun, Nirjuli, and Banderwa stayed quiet as markets, banks, schools, government offices, and business establishments closed their doors. Roads stayed nearly empty.

Three organisations — the Indigenous Youth Force of Arunachal, the Arunachal Pradesh Indigenous Youth Organisation, and the All Naharlagun Youth Organisation — called the bandh. They pressed for the demolition of what they allege are illegally built mosques and madrasas, identification and deportation of suspected illegal Bangladeshi immigrants, and a halt to weekly markets in the capital region.

Police detained six people for attempting to enforce the shutdown. Chukhu Apa, Inspector General of Police for Law and Order, said heavy security was in place and urged residents not to share inflammatory voice messages. He warned that such content would invite legal action.

Apa also pointed to recent changes in border monitoring. A new version of the Inner Line Permit system, ILP 3.0, is being rolled out to tighten oversight. Police have already detected close to nine thousand people entering without valid permits, and thousands of cases have been registered.

The bandh went ahead even though the Capital District Magistrate had declared it illegal under the Arunachal Pradesh Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and Section 163 of the BNSS.

The order said the call posed risks to public order and could affect upcoming municipal and panchayat elections. Citing Supreme Court rulings that bandhs infringe on constitutional rights, the administration warned that anyone enforcing the shutdown would face punishment.

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