Residents of Kaza in Lahaul Spiti area of Himachal Pradesh protested against the entry of the state's agriculture minister Ram Lal Markanda, saying that if people entering the state had to be quarantined, then why were ministers being given a free pass.
Lahaul Spiti is the only area in Himachal untouched by the coronavirus pandemic.
The women raised slogans against the minister's entry into the area, forcing him and his convoy of vehicles to retreat. Residents say they are unhappy at the different set of rules for locals and VIPs.
The protesters accused the minister of trying to visit the area without any check even as people wanting to return to the area were being stopped in the name of elaborate coronavirus checks.
They said that while locals are immediately quarantined, the ministers are not. They demanded that the same set of rules be applied to the minister as well.
Heavy deployment of the police force was seen at the spot.
The protesters were also upset that work of a road project in the area was being taken away from Border Roads Organisation (BRO) and handed over to the Public Works Department (PWD) as they fear it would lead to loss of jobs for the locals.
They demanded that the construction work of the Kaza to Granfo road not be handed over to the PWD as it would jeopardise the local economy, with many residents, engaged in the construction project, losing their jobs.
Markanda, however, claimed that locals will be employed in the project under the PWD as well.
The minister, who was travelling with a long convoy of cars, sat back in his Fortuner-make SUV when the convoy was greeted with loud slogans asking them to return.
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