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State Minister, Gopal Rai who was camping outside LG Baijal’s residence, said, "Police assured us that adequate security will be deployed in vulnerable areas. We're going back now".
Police have detained the protesters who had gathered at Marine Drive to protest against Monday’s violence in Delhi.
Three civilians were killed on Monday during clashes over the CAA in northeast Delhi, hours after a Delhi Police head constable was killed and a deputy commissioner of police was injured.
Tensions escalated in northeast Delhi with protesters torching at least two houses and a fire tender in the Jaffrabad and Maujpur areas, where pro and anti-CAA groups clashed for the second consecutive day.
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The Sambhal district administration in Uttar Pradesh has issued notices to 11 people part of a sit-in protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act for the past 20 days in Pucca Bagh area of Nakhasa, an official told PTI on Thursday.
The administration has identified 11 people for instigating the protesters, including several women, sitting on dharna and issued notices under CrPC sections 107 (security for keeping peace) and 116 (inquiry as to truth of information) asking them to sign a personal bond of Rs 50 lakh each with an undertaking that they would not indulge in any disruptive activities, Sub Divisional Magistrate Rajesh Kumar said.
On the other hand, Superintendent of Police Yamuna Prasad said a separate set of notices have been served by police to 75 people, including nine women, sitting on the dharna under section 149 of the CrPC, which empowers the police to prevent cognisable offences, reports PTI.
Opposition Congress today announced it would start its second phase of 'Padyatra' (march) against the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act across the north bank of Brahmaputra from Thursday.
The 'Padyatra' will begin from Behali in Sonitpur and conclude in Nalbari on 20 February.
Lucknow's administration has served notice to 13 people in connection with the violence and arson that occurred during the anti-CAA protests in the Sadar area on 19 December 2019.
Those identified have been asked to deposit Rs 21,76,000 with the government treasury within 30 days, according to the recovery order.
This comes after a plea against the government notice was dismissed by the Lucknow High Court.
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has said people in Shaheen Bagh, epicentre of anti-CAA protests, should agitate against the National Population Register and National Register of Citizens if they are worried that their citizenship is going to be taken away from them, PTI reported.
He claimed that the ongoing protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) at Shaheen Bagh in New Delhi served the BJP's "communal interest and also helped communal Muslim interests."
The anti-CAA protesters at Shaheen Bagh have extended an invitation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come and celebrate Valentine's Day with them on Friday.
Posters at the protest site in south-east Delhi and also circulating on social media platforms read: "PM Modi, please come to Shaheen Bagh, collect your gift and talk to us."
"Whether Prime Minister Modi or Home Minister Amit Shah or anyone else, they can come and talk to us. If they can convince us that whatever is happening is not against the Constitution, we will end this protest," Syed Taseer Ahmed, one of the first protesters at Shaheen Bagh.
BJP ally and Shiromani Akali Dal veteran Parkash Singh Badal on Thursday, 13 February while addressing a rally at Amritsar said that a government must not take sides based on religion and called for unity among all religious communities, referring to unrest in the country over the citizenship law.
UP Government slapped NSA on Dr Kafeel Khan days after he was granted bail by CJM Court in Aligarh in alleged inflammatory speech given at AMU during Anti CAA protest. Dr Khan is currently lodged in Mathura jail.
Karnataka Hight Court has issued notice in a PIL seeking to initiate action against the State Police for illegally examining and questioning minor students of Shaheen Education Society in Bidar.
Supreme Court has issued notice to the Centre on a plea challenging the constitutional validity of Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 & NRC. The court has sought the govt’s reply & tagged the matter along with similar pending matters. The petition was filed by Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind.
Former Planning Commission deputy chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia has said the government must hear voices of protest and bring a healing touch for creating an environment conducive to revival of investment, comments which come in the backdrop of anti-citizenship law demonstrations, PTI reports.
He said the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and possible creation of a National Register of Citizens have led to large-scale protests from students and the youth in many parts of the country.
The Opposition on Friday demanded a judicial probe into deaths during the anti-CAA protests in Uttar Pradesh, with the Samajwadi Party alleging that the casualties were caused in firing by police and BJP men, PTI reports.
The demand was raised in the state assembly during Zero Hour, when opposition parties also pressed for a discussion on the issue.
Opposition MLAs walked into the Well of the House, creating a ruckus, when Speaker Hriday Narayan Dixit turned down the notice for a discussion. The House was then adjourned for 30 minutes.
Chennai police have detained five people who were planning to hold ‘a date with democracy’ at the Ambedkar Mani Mandapam in Chennai, on Friday, 14 February.
Over 20 people have gathered at Mylapore police station with red balloons and messages of love and unity, demanding that those who were detained be released by the cops immediately.
Bail has been granted to the mother and the school headmistress who were charged in the Bidar sedition case, reports News18.
Bidar police had slapped sedition among other charges, against the headmistress of the school Fareeda Begum, as well as the parent of a child, after an ABVP worker alleged that an anti-CAA play at the Shaheen school insulted Prime Minister Modi.
Director Anurag Kashyap on Friday, 14 February, joined the students protesting the Citizenship Amendment Act at Jamia Millia Islamia, in Delhi.
As states not ruled by the BJP continue to oppose the NPR, the Centre has started an outreach to allay their apprehensions by meeting the chief ministers who are critical of the exercise, officials said on Friday.
Punjab, Kerala, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are some of the non-BJP-ruled led states that have apprehensions about the National Population Register (NPR) and are critical of the exercise.
The NPR data will be collected during the house-listing phase of the census to be conducted from 1 April to 30 September.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Friday demanded that the Centre withdraw the amended Citizenship Act to maintain peace and harmony in the country, according to PTI.
"The NDA government should reconsider the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), which is against the spirit of the Constitution, and should come forward to withdraw it so that peace and harmony can be maintained," he said, addressing a dharna against the CAA and a proposed-NRC at the Shahid Smarak in Jaipur.
A visit to Jamia Millia Islamia where students and others have been sitting in protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act has convinced him he is "alive", an impassioned Anurag Kashyap said on Friday.
The filmmaker, at the forefront of the criticism against the amended citizenship act, assured the students that he and many others stood behind the students in their long fight.
"I have come here for the first time. If we talk about the time before the past three months, I used to believe that we are finished and dead... but coming here today I'm convinced we are alive," Kashyap told the gathering.
After a visit to Jamia Millia Islamia, filmmaker Anurag Kashyap was also seen relishing biryani at Shaheen Bagh, the epicentre of the anti-CAA protests on Friday, 14 February.
Actor Naseeruddin Shah on Friday, 14 February, joined the anti-CAA protests at Bengaluru’s Bilal Bagh.
Anti-citizenship law protestors at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh on Friday, 14 February, paid homage to Pulwama martyrs and observed a one-minute silence for the soldiers as they continued their demonstration that is now in its third month, PTI reported.
School children presented dance performances on patriotic songs as the hundreds of people gathered there extended their respects to the 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel who were killed in a terrorist attack on the Jammu-Srinagar highway at Lethpora in Pulwama on 14 February 2019.
Protestors at south-east Delhi's Shaheen Bagh, which has now become symbolic of the resistance against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), had on Thursday extended an invitation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, inviting him to come and celebrate Valentine's Day with them.
A group of people, including students of Jamia Millia Islamia, held a protest near the Tamil Nadu House in Delhi over the alleged lathicharge by the Chennai police on anti-CAA demonstrators.
The small group of protesters, which also included a couple of young women, tried to march from the Bihar Bhawan towards the Tamil Nadu House, and raised anti-BJP and anti-RSS slogans in Tamil.
The protesters were detained midway as they tried to march towards the Tamil Nadu House in Chanakyapuri, police said. Later, a few more people, including women, were also detained.
Several women and kids sit in Washermanpet, Chennai to protest against lathi-charge by the police and also against the controversial CAA-NRC. Earlier, there was a protest at Mint Street which has ended now.
A section of Shaheen Bagh protesters on Saturday, 15 February, said they were ready to meet Home Minister Amit Shah to raise their concerns over the new citizenship law but added that the onus was on the government to call them for talks.
However, Home Ministry officials said no request has come for an appointment with Shah to discuss issues related to anti-CAA protests.
Some protesters also said they would march to the Union Home Minister's residence on Sunday afternoon.
The protesters at Shaheen Bagh have begun a march towards Home Minister Amit Shah’s residence to demand the revocation of the new citizenship law, ANI reported.
Shaheen Bagh protesters halted their march to Home Minister Amit Shah's residence, NDTV reported.
“We will wait for the permission to meet Shah,” the protesters said.
Taking a swipe at the anti-CAA protest at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan on Sunday, 16 February, said what is happening there is not an expression of the right to dissent, but “an attempt to impose views on others,” PTI reported.
Some people have decided to take the law into their hands and disrupt normal life, he said.
"This is not the right to dissent, this is an attempt to impose views on others. You have the right to express your views but you don't have the right to disrupt normal life," the governor said.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday, 16 February, said that the state will neither implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) in Kerala, nor will it permit the National Population Register (NPR) enumeration, according to ANI.
Vijayan also said that detention centres will not be built by the state.
“The state is ready to collect information as part of the census but wouldn't take part in data collection in the second phase of NPR,” Vijayan added.
The Telangana government on Sunday decided to pass an assembly resolution against the Citizenship Amendment Act, joining the ranks of anti-CAA states.
The Telangana government took the decision in a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, while urging the Centre to repeal the last year's changes in the Citizenship Act.
It also appealed to the Centre "not to discriminate" on the basis of religion in granting citizenship to anyone.
The Cabinet further requested the central government to take measures to abrogate the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 which will lead to discrimination on the basis of religion while granting citizenship and thereby jeopardising secularism envisaged in the constitution, an official release on decisions taken in the Cabinet meeting said on late Sunday night.
The Supreme Court on Monday, 17 February, appointed senior advocates Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran to talk to Shaheen Bagh protesters to shift to another site.
People have right to protest but can’t block roads, the apex court said, suggesting that the Delhi Police may also offer them an alternative site to protest.
Sharjeel Imam, arrested on sedition charges has been sent to one day custody of Delhi Police on Monday, 17 February, in a case related to violent protests against CAA, PTI reported.
Police has also sought custodial interrogation of Sharjeel after another accused in anti-CAA protests case alleged he was provoked by his speeches.
Social activist and Ramon Magsaysay Award recipient Sandeep Pandey and nine others were arrested on Monday, 17 February, for allegedly violating prohibitory orders in the Chowk area of Lucknow, PTI reported.
Pandey and nine others, were distributing pamphlets of their 'padyatra' scheduled from the Clock Tower to Ujariaon against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act later in the day.
They were booked under IPC Section 151 (knowingly joining or continuing in assembly of five or more persons after it has been commanded to disperse), police said.
AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday welcomed the Telangana cabinet's decision to pass an assembly resolution against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act while the BJP described it as “a minority appeasement tactic,” PTI reported.
Owaisi claimed the proposed National Population Register (NPR) has nothing to do with social welfare schemes and it is purely an exercise done to undertake the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in future.
He also hoped that state chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao would put on hold the National Population Register exercise just as Kerala.
As many as 154 prominent citizens, including former judges, bureaucrats, armed forces officers and academicians, on Monday, said a “false and motivated” campaign is being launched against the CAA, NPR and NRC with a sinister design to harm the nation and sought action against trouble-makers, PTI reported.
In a letter to President Ram Nath Kovind, the citizens urged the central government to look into the ongoing protests with all seriousness and safeguard the democratic institutions of the country, and take stern action against those people behind them.
The citizens, including 11 former judges of different high courts, 24 retired IAS officers, 11 former Indian Foreign Service officers, 16 retired IPS and 18 former Lieutenant Generals.
An FIR has been registered against a leader of Ittehad-e-Millat Council for allegedly making inflammatory speech during anti-CAA protests in Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal, police said on Monday, 17 February, according to PTI.
Tauqeer Raza Khan, founder of the political party Ittehad-e-Millat Council, allegedly called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a “terrorist” during his speech on Sunday. He also made certain defamatory comments against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, they alleged.
Around 50 students of the Jawaharlal Nehru University gathered at Jantar Mantar on Monday, 17 February, to protest against the CAA and the NRC, PTI reported.
They protesters demanded the release of Sharjeel Imam, arrested on sedition charge last month and Dr Kafeel Khan, booked under the National Security Act for his speech during an anti-CAA protest at Aligarh Muslim University on 12 December.
The protest was led by JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh and vice-president Saket Moon.
The Centre can end the anti-CAA protest at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh but it is keeping the issue alive to avoid discussion on pressing issues like unemployment and economic slowdown, AAP leader Sanjay Singh claimed on Monday, 17 February, PTI reported.
He said the responsibility to end the logjam lies with the Centre and not the AAP-led Delhi government.
After joining the BJP, former Jharkhand Chief Minister Babulal Marandi on Monday asked the minority community not to "fear" the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and called upon party workers to drive out the horror from their minds, according to PTI.
Marandi said the CAA is for Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Jains, Buddhists and Parsis who had faced persecution for several years in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh and there was no reason for the natives to fear it.
The three interlocutors, appointed by the Supreme Court to talk to protesters at Shaheen Bagh, will be meeting at Senior Advocate Sanjay Hegde’s place on Tuesday, 18 February.
The Delhi Police has filed a charge sheet in a court in Delhi in a case related to violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) at New Friends Colony on 15 December last year and named Sharjeel Imam as an instigator.
The police said it has attached CCTV footage, call detail records and statements of over 100 witnesses as evidence in the charge sheet placed before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Gurmohina Kaur, reported PTI.
Mumbai Police said today, “Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Azad has been denied permission for his rally against Citizenship Amendment Act, National Register of Citizens and National Population Register scheduled on 21 February in Azad Maidan on grounds of law and order maintenance,” reported ANI.
An anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protest on the lines of Delhi's Shaheen Bagh sit-in entered its fifth day today in Latur in Maharashtra.
The protest, in which women from both majority and minority communities are taking part along with artists painting images of icons like Babasaheb Ambedkar and Shaheed Bhagat Singh, began at Annabhau Chowk on 14 February, reported PTI.
In Chennai, after Madras High Court restrained a body of Muslim organisations from going ahead with its agitation to block state secretariat tomorrow, demanding the state government to pass a resolution against CAA, the Muslim organisations held a meeting today. They have decided to go ahead with blockade tomorrow, reported ANI.
The Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court has issued notices to the state government and the Nagpur Police Commissioner on a petition filed by Bhim Army, challenging the police's decision to not allow Chandrashekhar Azad to hold a public meeting at Reshimbagh ground on 22 February, reported ANI.
The ground in which the Bhim Army wants to hold a rally, to be addressed by its chief Chandrashekhar Azad, is close to the headquarters of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Kotwali police denied permission citing law and order.
The petition, filed by Bhim Army Nagpur district chief Praful Shende through his counsel Firdos Mirza, said the outfit had got permission from the CP and Berar Education Society which controls the Nagpur Improvement Trusted-owned ground, reported PTI.
In Andhra Pradesh, TDP MP Kesineni Srinivas shared dais with AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi at a protest rally against CAA, NRC and NPR in Vijayawada today. He appealed to Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to move a resolution against CAA and he will see that TDP MLAs support it, reported ANI.
The Supreme Court appointed interlocutors is likely to meet the protesters in Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh area on Wednesday, 19 February.
The Supreme Court on Monday had asked senior advocate Sanjay Hegde and advocate Sadhana Ramachandran to meet the protesters and discuss moving the protests to an alternative site where no public place would be blocked.
After the Supreme Court expressed concern on blockade of a public road at Shaheen Bagh and suggested that the anti-CAA protestors shift to another site, several of those participating in the stir contested the claim that the sit-in was causing inconvenience to a large number of commuters.
Several protesters on Tuesday, 18 February, said that the Shaheen Bagh-Kalindi Kunj road in southeast Delhi, which is blocked for over two months, is used by only a few commuters, that too mostly from the vicinity of Jamia Nagar and Okhla who had agreed to the use of the site for the demonstration.
Hundreds of anti-CAA protesters in Chennai started a march towards the State Secretariat from Walajah Road to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act, National Register of Citizens and National Population Register.
According to ground reports, heavy police force has been deployed in view of the ongoing Assembly session.
Anti-CAA protesters sang the national anthem at Chepauk in Chennai as hundreds protests outside the State Secretariat against the Citizenship Amendment Act, National Population Register,and National Register of Citizens.
Amit Malviya, BJP Information & Technology Head posted a video on Twitter alleging that civil rights activist, Teesta Setalvad is tutoring protesters on questions to be asked to SC appointed interlocutors on Wednesday evening.
The Supreme Court on Monday had asked senior advocate Sanjay Hegde and advocate Sadhana Ramachandran to meet the protesters and discuss moving the protests to an alternative site where no public place would be blocked.
Senior advocate Sanjay Hegde and advocate Sadhana Ramachandran addressed protesters at Shaheen Bagh and said that they are here to “talk to them and hear them out.”
“Supreme Court has said that you have the right to protest. The law (CAA) has been challenged in the Supreme Court. But like us, others too have their rights, like right to use roads, open their shops,” Ramachandran said.
Hegde and Ramachandran said that they will not talk to the protesters in front of the media.
“Will not start dialogue till all journalists get back to their newsrooms,” said Ramachandran.
Suspected Maoists rebels blew up a school building in Bihar's Gaya district and left behind pamphlets denouncing the CAA-NPR-NRC and the "fascist BJP government", a senior police official said on Wednesday.
Rajeev Mishra, the Senior Superintendent of Police of Gaya, said nobody was injured in the blast that razed the empty school building in Banke Bazaar police station area late Tuesday night. A CRPF contingent was stationed there till recently.
"A team of 153 Battalion of CRPF had been camping in the area since March 18 last year when naxals had carried out an attack ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. They had been putting up at Sonedaha High School and shifted to their own camp in the thick of the jungle nearby on February 08," Mishra said.
SC appointed mediator Sadhana Ramachandran, after meeting Shaheen Bagh protesters said that she, a;omg with Sanjay Hegde will return tomorrow for another round of talks.
“We met them and listened to them. We asked them if they want us to come back tomorrow as it's not possible to complete the talks in one day. They said they want us to come back tomorrow, so we will,” she said.
UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, on Wednesday, 19 February, kicked off a major controversy when he slammed the anti-CAA protesters and made a disparaging remark on the deaths that took place during the protests.
“Agar koi marne ke liye aa hi raha hai to woh zinda kahan se ho jaayega?” (If someone is coming with the intent to die, then how will the person remain alive?) he said while referring to the 22 deaths that took place during the anti-CAA protests in December 2019.
The students of AMU issued a statement against comments made by Yogi Adityanath that they were involved in violence during anti-CAA protests on 15 December.
“AMU Students strongly condemn the false statements made by M Yogi Adatynath, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in the State Assembly today accusing AMU students of hitting the roads in large numbers to burn the Aligarh City on 15th December 2019. His statement that the students of AMU used stones, petrol bombs and weapons against Police is absolute falsehood and contrary to the truth. He is trying to cover up the state terror committed against the students of AMU on the 15 December,” the statement said.
Just minutes after two of the Supreme Court-appointed interlocutors left the Shaheen Bagh protest site, the third member of the team, former Chief Information Commissioner, Wajahat Habibullah reached the site with an entourage of advocates.
Former CIC, Habibullah was part of this team along with senior lawyers Sadhna Ramachandran and Sanjay Hegde.
However in the first visit to the site on Wednesday, Habibullah did not accompany the two lawyers, leaving protesters wondering about reasons for his absence.
"Where is our third advocate... where is Habibullah sahab," protesters were seen asking Hegde and Ramachandran as the two tried to address the gathering.
But minutes after the two left the site, promising to return on Thursday, Habibullah reached protest site with advocates, including Mehmood Paracha.
Senior advocates Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran, the panel appointed by the Supreme Court to hold talks with anti-CAA protesters at Shaheen Bagh said that they were hopeful for a “good resolution” over the issue.
“We have had a very fruitful first meeting with the protesters at Shaheen Bagh today. We met a whole lot of very proud Indians who have great confidence in their constitutional institutions. There was great appreciation of the Supreme Court and its important belief in democratic dialogue. It is very important for aggrieved parties to be heard, is how we saw it and everyone expressed their confidence as joint co-citizens of this country and that together we can find a feasible solution. Mutual appreciation and respect of everyone’s rights is the only way forward in this country and we both remain extremely hopeful of a good resolution,” said Ramachandran.
“We thank all the participants in the interaction for their discipline. We specially thank the Delhi police, the media and the Shaheen Bagh volunteers for their constructive cooperation. We will return tomorrow with a renewed hope of resolution that satisfies all,” Hegde added.
Senior advocates Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran, the panel appointed by the Supreme Court to hold talks with anti-CAA protesters at Shaheen Bagh, are likely to visit the site again on Thursday at around 3pm, News18 reported.
The panel had previously visited the site on Wednesday, 19 February, and had said that they were hopeful for a “good resolution” of the issue.
Addressing anti-CAA-NPR protesters in Dehradun’s Parade Ground, Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad on Wednesday, 19 February, said “I won’t allow the government to implement CAA, NPR and NRC in the country. It’s my challenge to them. All three are divisive in nature and against the country’s unity.”
The Hindustan Times quoted Azad as saying “those in power, who got absolute majority in the elections, think that they can do anything like bringing these controversial issues. I urge the protesters to continue protesting and not to bow before the government.”
“If any official comes and asks for data on NPR, welcome him, offer him tea and food, and ask them to turn away without showing any documents. I assure you, it is completely as per law and not illegal to refuse data on the same,” he added.
A protest was organised by the Jamia Millia Islamia Coordination committee outside UP Bhawan on Thursday, 20 February, against the UP government, with the protesters demanding the release of Dr Kafeel Khan. The protesters have been detained by the Delhi Police, ANI reported.
Quoting sources from the Delhi Police, ANI also said that the Delhi Police Crime Branch had issued notices to 10 students of Jamia Millia Islamia University in connection with the violence in the university's campus during an anti-CAA protest on December 15. The police said it had identified the students based on CCTV clips that had surfaced recently.
Activists S R Darapuri and Sadaf Jafar said on Thursday, 20 February, that they intend to move court against the Uttar Pradesh government's recovery notices on them for damage to public property during anti-CAA protests last year, PTI reported.
They stated they have not yet received any official communication seeking recovery, but a senior government official said the notices have been issued to 28 people including them.
Lucknow Additional District Magistrate (East) KP Singh had on Monday issued recovery notices to 28 people stating that they have to deposit Rs 63 lakh by March 20, otherwise action will be taken against them.
Senior advocates Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran, the panel appointed by the Supreme Court, held talks with anti-CAA protesters at Shaheen Bagh returned to the protest site for a second round of talks on Thursday, 20 February.
Senior advocates Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran, the panel appointed by the Supreme Court asked media-persons to leave the protest site at Shaheen Bagh as they held a second round of talks with the protesters at the venue.
CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat joins women at Washermanpet in Chennai in their indefinite protest against CAA-NRC-NPR.
Senior advocates Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran, the panel appointed by the Supreme Court to hold talks with anti-CAA protesters at Shaheen Bagh, left the protest site after holding discussions for the second consecutive day on Thursday, 20 February.
“Our mediation talks are continuing and we will come back again tomorrow to Shaheen Bagh,” Ramachandran told the media while leaving the venue.
A woman was detained by the Bengaluru police on Thursday, 20 February evening, for shouting “Pakistan Zindabad” during an anti-CAA event in the city.
At the event, which was attended by AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi, Amulya Leona went on to the stage and shouted “Hindustan Zindabad and Pakistan Zindabad” a few times before the mic was taken away from her.
She was then taken into custody by the police.
JNU student Sharjeel Imam, accused of instigating the the violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) at New Friends Colony on 15 December 2019, was brought to Guwahati for interrogation. He will be produced before a local court.
Members of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) staged protest outside Guwahati Railway station, as he was brought.
Sharjeel Imam has been sent to 4-day police remand by a local court in Guwahati.
Speaking about the second day of interaction, senior advocates Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran said that it yielded many more insights and responses.
“The protestors at Shaheen Bagh, reiterated their respect for and confidence in the Supreme Court. They were very grateful for the opportunity offered to them by the supreme Court to consider their position. We strongly recommend to the protestors to fruitfully utilise this interval. Some women protestors pointed out options of alternative roads, which could ease the crisis,” they said.
The senior advocates said that they went on a site inspection of most of the roads barricaded as a consequence of the agitation. They also said that they urged the protestors to come up with creative solutions to the traffic situation while simultaneously protecting the right to protest.
“We are happy that the Delhi police have co-operated with our suggestions and the usage of some roads may soon be restored, especially for Faridabad commuters. We will continue to meet the protestors, hopefully in a much more organised manner,” the advocates said.
Reading the Preamble together with the protesting women at Seelampur-Jaffrabad, Chandrashekhar Azad condemned the brutal attack on protestors in Kanpur. During his speech, he also called for mass support for the all India Bandh called by Bhim Army on 23 February.
An alternate road between Noida and Faridabad, which was shut for the last 69 days after anti-CAA protests began at Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh, has been reopened by the UP Police to ease congestion. However, this is not the main route that had been blocked.
An alternate route near Delhi's Shaheen Bagh was reopened today by the Uttar Pradesh and Delhi Police, 69 days after it was barricaded due to the two-month long protests against the CAA.
The road was open for barely 40 minutes, to ease traffic congestion, and was then shut again, NDTV reported. The opening came after two Supreme Court-appointed mediators held talks with the protesters.
Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Friday, 21 February, said the woman who has been charged with sedition for raising pro-Pakistan slogans during an anti-CAA event in Bengaluru, had links with Naxals in the past, PTI reported.
Amulya Leona had raised "Pakistan Zindabad" slogan thrice after the organisers of the event under the banner of "Save Constitution" invited her to address the gathering in the presence of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi. She was immediately taken into custody and subsequently produced before a judicial magistrate and sent to 14-day custody. A sedition case was also filed against her.
Following the incident of Amulya Leona, yet another Bengaluru protester was taken into custody over a controversial placard.
Talking to media, Bengaluru Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao said that the incident took place at Hindu Jagaran Vedike's protest against the Amulya incident near Town Hall in the city. "One single girl, an individual, came and sat there among those people, with a placard in Kannada language showing 'Dalit mukti, Kashmir mukti, Muslim mukti," Rao said.
He added that "the people asked her to go from there, and a crowd gathered, so we had to go and rescue that girl and she has now been taken into our custody, for her own safety. Along with that placard, she is under supervision."
The BJP on Friday alleged that AIMIM leader Waris Pathan's controversial remarks shows the conspiracy going on in the name of anti-CAA protest and questioned the "silence of liberals" opposing the law, PTI reported.
Addressing an anti-CAA rally in Karnataka on 16 February, the AIMIM leader had reportedly alleged that 15 crore Muslims can prove to be heavy on the other 100 crore.
Addressing a press conference, spokesperson Sambhit Patra said Pathan's remarks shows the conspiracy going on in the name of protests. "I want to ask all the so-called liberals, who have been opposing CAA, why are they silent on his remarks?" Patra asked. It also vindicates that the ladies sitting in Shaheen Bagh are just being used as a shield to further the cause of hatred, he added.
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan in an indirect criticism of Shaheen Bagh protestors, said people sitting on roads and disrupting normal life to force their opinion on others is a form of terrorism.
“Aggression doesn't come in the form of violence only. It comes in many forms... If you won't listen to me, I will disrupt normal life,” said the Kerala governor at ‘Bhartiya Chhatra Sansad,’ reports PTI.
Some women protesters at Shaheen Bagh stated today that the condition of talks by the Supreme Court-appointed interlocutors is not acceptable to them, reported ANI.
The interlocutors, Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran on Thursday, told the Shaheen Bagh protesters that terms and condition of talks will be decided by them. This was their one condition to initiate the dialogue with the protesters.
Mehrunisa, one of the protesters, when asked about interlocutors suggesting that the women can meet them in a group pf 20, she said that there would be no talks in groups as suggested by Ramachandran.
A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the sedition case registered against a Karnataka school management for allegedly allowing students to stage an anti-CAA, anti-NRC drama that “portrayed Prime Minister Narendra Modi in poor light.”
The petition seeks quashing of the FIR against the principal and other staff of the Shaheen School at Bidar who have been booked under sections 124-A (sedition) and 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups) of the Indian Penal Code, reported PTI.
Members of a civil society organisation in Meghalaya on today threatened to intensify protest for an Inner Line Permit (ILP) regime in the state, a day after Chief Minister Conrad Sangma met Union Home Minister Amit Shah and said the Centre was examining the proposal, reported PTI.
Sangma had on Thursday led a delegation of the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) that met Shah in New Delhi and sought ILP for the state as was in existence in Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram.
The Shaheen Bagh protesters told the Supreme Court-appointed interlocutors on Friday that if the road parallel to the protest site was opened, the apex court should pass an order ensuring their security.
The interlocutors — senior advocates Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran --began the third day of their discussion with the Shaheen Bagh protesters on Friday evening.
The Delhi Police admitted that the protesters had not blocked the parallel road, but they had barricaded it to provide security to the protest site, reported PTI.
Sanjay Hegde, one of mediators appointed by Supreme Court, after meeting Shaheen Bagh protestors said, “This morning we were very happy about opening of Noida- Faridabad road by Police. However, we were disappointed later as road was barricaded again for no apparent reason by police.”
Hegde, one of mediators appointed by Supreme Court said, “This (re-barricading the roads) is extremely distressing to us and we wish to emphasize that the action of re-barricading the roads defeats the very purpose of confidence building on the part of the Police,” reported ANI.
One of the roads going from Kalindi Kunj to Noida was opened on Saturday, 22 February, two months after it was closed by the Delhi Police over protests at Shaheen Bagh. According to reports, this is a non-protest road.
The road in question is the number 9 (Okhla) Noida-Kalindi Kunj road.
Meanwhile, the south-east Delhi DCP was quoted by ANI as saying, “A little earlier today, Road number 9 was reopened by a group of protestors, but later it was closed by another group. Again, a group of protestors have reopened a small stretch. However, still there's no clarity if all protestors have consent on this.”
Entry, exit gates of Jaffrabad metro station were closed on Sunday as overnight protest by around 500 people, mostly women, against CAA-NRC led to blockage of road no. 66 which connects Seelampur with Maujpur and Yamuna Vihar.
Residents of Delhi’s Sarita Vihar and Jasola hold protest against the anti-CAA protests in Shaheen Bagh. The residents are demanding the opening of all the roads that have been closed due to protests in Shaheen Bagh, reported ANI.
“People protesting against Citizenship Amendment Act pelted stones at Police vehicles and tried set a transformer ablaze near Jama Masjid,” Chandrabhushan Singh, Aligarh District Magistrate said.
He added. “Protesters pelted stones at Police vehicles so Police had to resort to teargas to disperse them,” reported ANI.
“Some women students from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) are behind this, we are trying to identify them. We are ascertaining the damage caused by rioters and it will be recovered from them. Situation is under control now,” he further continued.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray in Mumbai, “Wherever BJP governments are in power like Uttar Pradesh, or Delhi which is under Home Ministry, we have seen protests like Shaheen Bagh going on for over 60 days. In Uttar Pradesh, riots have taken place over CAA protests.”
“In worst situations, like Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), terrorists entered university and the way they thrashed (students). I have not come across any news that they have been arrested,” he added, reported ANI.
In Delhi’s Hauz Rani area, some women have been injured, following a mild lathi charge and stampede in an anti-CAA march, sources told The Quint.
The area has been barricaded and police isn't allowing more people to go inside now.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in Darbhanga stated, “National Register of Citizens (NRC) will not be implemented in Bihar and National Population Register (NPR) should be done on the same basis as was done in 2010, not any other way,” reported ANI.
After violence broke out between police and anti-citizenship law protesters on Sunday, 23 February, evening in Uttar Pradesh's Aligarh, mobile internet was suspended for a six-hour period starting 6 pm, reports NDTV.
This suspension is likely to be extended as authorities try to restore order.
The clash reportedly involved stone throwing, a shop being set on fire, a police vehicle being vandalised and some police officers being injured. A motorcycle belonging to one of the policemen was also set ablaze by protesters.
Court-appointed interlocutors Sanjay Hegde and Sadhana Ramachandran have handed over their report to the Supreme Court bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and KM Joseph, in a sealed cover on Monday.
The case has been adjourned till Wednesday, 26 February.
Justice Kaul said the report is for the court only and will not be placed on record.
On Sunday, former information commissioner Wajahat Habibullah filed an affidavit in the court with his own findings, including that the protests are peaceful, that the police have unnecessarily blocked roads around Shaheen Bagh, and that school vans and ambulances have been allowed to pass through the blocked roads.
Habibullah was not appointed as an interlocutor by the apex court on 17 February, but the court noted that Hegde and Ramachandran could take his assistance. Habibullah is also an intervenor in the petitions being heard by the court which have asked for the protests at Shaheen Bagh to be ended.
Clashes broke out between pro and anti-CAA groups in northeast Delhi's Maujpur area for the second consecutive day on Monday, 24 February with agitators pelting stones at each other, according to PTI.
Police reportedly once again fired tear gas shells to disperse the protesters. A few policemen also attempted to pacify the groups. The entry and exit at the Jaffrabad and Maujpur-Babarpur stations were closed after the incident.
On Sunday, clashes broke out between two groups of people near Jaffrabad, Maujpur in northeast Delhi, where a large number of people had gathered to protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).
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Tension escalated in northeast Delhi with protesters torching at least two houses and a fire tender in the Jaffrabad and Maujpur areas, where pro and anti-CAA groups clashed for the second consecutive day on Monday and hurled stones at each other.
Violence was also reported from the Chandbagh area in Jaffrabad.
Police fired tear gas shells and also lathicharged to disperse the protesters.
According to officials, a fire tender was damaged by the protesters after it responded to a fire call in the area.
The Delhi Metro closed entry and exit at the Jaffrabad and Maujpur-Babarpur stations as an uneasy calm prevailed in the area.
Entry and exit were closed at the Jaffrabad metro station for over 24 hours.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday urged Lt Governor Anil Baijal and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to restore law and order in the wake of violence in parts of northeast Delhi during protests for and against the new citizenship law.
According to the police, the situation in northeast Delhi is under control now.
Ved Prakash Surya DCP (North-East) says, "We have spoken to both sides, now the situation is calm. We are continuously speaking to people, now the situation is under control.”
Section 144 CrPC has been imposed at ten locations in northeast district of Delhi after fresh violence broke out.
“Some incidents of violence and arson have been reported in the areas of North East District, particularly in the areas of Maujpur, Kardampuri, Chand Bagh and Dayalpur. It is appealed to the people to maintain peace and harmony and not to believe in any false rumours,” ANI reported, quoting Delhi Police.
“Section 144 has been imposed in the affected areas of the North East district and strict action will be taken against miscreants and anti-social elements,” the report said.
A head constable has been killed during clashes over CAA in northeast Delhi, Delhi Police says, according to PTI.
A Guwahati Court has extended police custody of Sharjeel Imam for four more days, ANI reports.
Amid fresh violence in northeast Delhi on Monday, Delhi L-G Anil Baijal said that he had instructed Delhi Police and Commissioner of Police to ensure that law and order is maintained in the area.
“The situation is being closely monitored. I urge everyone to exercise restraint for the maintenance of peace and harmony,” Baijal wrote on Twitter.
A petrol pump was set ablaze in north east Delhi's Bhajanpura amid clashes, News18 reports.
Delhi minister and Babarpur MLA Gopal Rai on Monday urged the people in the area to maintain peace in the wake of clashes, saying some people were purposely trying to disturb the atmosphere.
Rai said that he had spoken to Delhi LG Anil Baijal and was assured that more police personnel would be deployed to bring the situation under control.
"With folded hands, I request people in Babarpur Assembly to maintain peace. Some people are purposely trying to spoil the atmosphere. I have spoken to Delhi LG and he has assured me that more policemen will be deployed to bring the situation under control," Rai said in a tweet.
Fresh violence has been reported from Kardampuri, Shahdara in Delhi, News18 reports.
Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said on Monday that senior officers are in the field and that sufficient forces have been deployed, adding that the situation is under control.
CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Monday held the Centre responsible for the violence that has erupted in Delhi over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and appealed to all to maintain peace.
His comments come after a Delhi Police head constable was killed and a deputy commissioner of police injured as clashes over the amended citizenship law broke out again in northeast Delhi's Jaffrabad, Maujpur and Chand Bagh, with protesters torching houses, shops and vehicles, and hurling stones at each other.
Samajwadi Party and Congress staged a walkout in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly on Monday against alleged police atrocities on peaceful anti-CAA protesters, including women, in Aligarh.
Soon after the House met at 11 am, Leader of Opposition Ram Govind Chaudhary demanded a discussion on the issue. He alleged that women were lathi-charged and tear gas shells were fired during the protest in Aligarh on Sunday.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and Congress leader Aradhana Misra, who raised the issue through separate notices, alleged that the government is out crush the peaceful protest against the CAA.
Entry and exit gates of Udyog Bhawan, Patel Chowk, Central Secretariat and Janpath have been closed, while interchange facility will be open at Central Secretariat.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday condemned the violence in Delhi and urged people to show restraint, compassion and understanding irrespective of the provocation.
He said peaceful protests are a sign of a healthy democracy, but violence can never be justified.
Bhim Army Chief Chandra Shekhar Azad took to Twitter on Monday to say that the condition of Delhi is worrying and added that he was on his way to Delhi.
A civilian has been killed in fresh violence in northeast Delhi on Monday, reports say.
More than 20 people who were injured during the violence at Jafrabad on Monday are receiving treatment at Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital. They are admitted in the casualty ward with serious injuries, ANI reported.
This photo of a man being beaten up emerged amid clashes over the Citizeship (Amendment) Act (CAA) in northeast Delhi on Monday, 24 February.
BJP leader Kapil Mishra on Monday appealed to everyone to stop the violence, saying "it will not lead to any solution," ANI reported.
"Whether they are people who are supporting CAA or those who are against it, or those who are blocking the roads, I appeal everyone to maintain peace. Delhi's brotherhood should remain intact. The violence in Delhi should be stopped immediately," Mishra said.
As protests over CAA in the national capital turned violent, Special Commissioner of Police (Crime) Satish Golcha on Monday, 24 February, said they are "trying to maintain law and order."
"We've been requesting everyone to come forward to support the Delhi Police in maintaining law and order. Our officers are holding foot marches and appealing gatherings to peacefully disperse," Golcha said, according to ANI.
Condemning the violence in northeast Delhi, State Minister for Home Affairs Kishan Reddy stated that MHA is monitoring the situation. He added that additional forces have been deployed in respective regions.
Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia said on Monday evening that all government and private schools will remain closed in northeast Delhi on Tuesday.
He also said that he had spoken to Union HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal in connection with the board exams in the district and that they would be postponed.
Another anti-CAA protester was shot in the eye by an armed pro-CAA civilian at Gonda, Maujpur, on Monday, 24 February. He was rushed to the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, sources told The Quint.
Three civilians were killed on Monday, 24 February, during clashes over the CAA in northeast Delhi.
Earlier in the day, a Delhi Police head constable was killed and a deputy commissioner of police was injured.
Bhim Army Chief, Chandra Shekhar Azad has written a letter to Lieutenant Governor of Delhi saying, “I am extremely concerned for safety and security of people belonging to Muslim and Scheduled Caste community in many parts of North East Delhi and wish to visit the areas affected by violence', reported ANI.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi has appealed to the people of Delhi to maintain communal harmony and defeat the ill intentions of forces trying to divide India on the basis of religion, reported ANI.
CBSE on its official twitter handle stated that CBSE exams will be held as per schedule. CBSE and no change in CBSE exams scheduled for tomorrow as there are no centres in rest of Delhi.
Environment Minister Gopal Rai is camping outside LG Anil Baijal's residence to meet him and discuss law and order situation in Delhi. Rai said situation has become tense in his constituency Babarpur and alleged that there is no police deployment. The minister was accompanied by AAP Burari MLA Sanjeev Jha, reported PTI.
People have gathered at Marine Drive to protest against the violence that took place in Delhi earlier today. According to Delhi Police, total 4 people (3 civilians & 1 police head constable) have lost their lives in clashes in North-East Delhi, reported PTI.
Delhi Cabinet Minister, Gopal Rai who is camping outside LG Anil Baijal's residence stated that he wants to meet LG Baijal and will request him to deploy security forces & arrest the perpetrators so that peace & harmony are restored.
Fire at tyre market near Gokulpuri metro station area was allegedly set ablaze during the violence that broke out in North-East Delhi has now been doused. 10 fire tenders were present at the spot. No casualties were reported.
Police have detained the protesters who had gathered at Marine Drive to protest against Monday’s violence in Delhi, according to Delhi Police, total 4 people (3 civilians & 1 police head constable) have lost their lives in clashes in North-East Delhi, reported ANI.
Delhi Police Special Commissioner, Rajesh Khurana reached outside Lieutenant Governor's residence where AAP leaders were waiting to meet the LG. State Minister, Gopal Rai who was camping outside LG Baijal’s residence, said, "Police assured us that adequate security will be deployed in vulnerable areas. We're going back now".
4 civilians and one cop has been killed during clashes that erupted in nrtheast Delhi on 24 February.