The bundh call was given by the residents of Ranip area protesting against the mysterious deaths of two boys studying in a Gurukul on July 5. They demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident.

The roads in Vadaj, Sabarmati and Chandlodia areas, which are in close proximity to the deceased boys’ house, were swarming with bundh supporters since Friday morning.

Bodies of two cousins Dipesh Vaghela (10) and Abhishek Vaghela (11) were found on the banks of Sabarmati river near Sardar Patel Stadium, about 2.5- km from Asharam Bapu Ashram at Motera in Gandhinagar.

The missing boys were enrolled in Classes V and VI respectively. Some sporadic incident of violence were also reported from different parts of the city, police said.

Incidents of stone pelting on Ahmedabad Municipal Transport Service (AMTS) buses were reported from the Nirnaynagar and Sabarmati areas of the city, police added.

Scribes beaten up

Journalists were attacked and their equipment damaged on Friday by supporters of Ashram Bapu during the bundh.

A group of journalists who were outside the Ashram at  Motera on the outskirts of the city bore the brunt.
“We were outside the Ashram covering the bundh when supporters of the Bapu came out from inside and attacked us,” Gopi Ganghar of Aajtak, who sustained injuries in the incident said.

“They also damaged equipment and OB vans of the news channel,” Ganghar, who was later hospitalised, said.