Bhima-Koregaon violence: 20 buses vandalised, train services hit

RPI workers ask shopkeepers to down shutters near Kurla station. (Pradip Das)

Dalit men, women and children gathered in various parts of Chembur and around through Tuesday, demanding action against those behind the attack in Bhima Koregaon Monday that left one person dead. Around 11.30 am, protesters stopped a Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus-bound suburban local train at Chembur station by blocking the railway tracks and shouting slogans.

Even as the Government Railway Police called for extra forces to remove the protesters from the tracks, the latter allowed the train to resume only after 20 minutes. Meanwhile, protesters tried to stage rail rokos elsewhere, including one in Govandi.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (GRP) Samadhan Pawar said, “There was a rail roko on the harbour line of Central Railway between 1.30 pm and 4 pm. There was a staff of over 60 people deployed comprising GRP, Railway Protection Force and Riot Control Police who convinced the protesters to get off the tracks.”

The Central Railway confirmed that harbour line trains were stalled between Kurla and Mankhurd stations during those three hours. In Chembur, the protesters said there was a call to gather inside the Ambedkar Garden — messages were shared on WhatsApp — but police stopped the protesters at Chembur checkpost, which remained tense throughout the day. Shops and other establishments, excluding medical stores, were forced to pull their shutters down.

Around 1 pm at Chembur Naka, protesters including women stopped traffic on the Sion-Panvel highway in both directions for a few hours. Vehicles entering and exiting the city, including state transport buses, remained stranded. Traffic personnel began to divert traffic through a parallel route after 3 pm. There were also incidents of stone-pelting on vehicles, including BEST buses.

Near the Amar Mahal junction in Chembur, around 2 pm, approximately 150 protesters, mainly women and children, gathered on the Eastern Express Highway and refused to let vehicles pass. “Despite the attack on us in Bhima Koregaon, there has been no statement by the state government, nor any action taken. We are left with no option but to protest to ensure that our voices are heard. the authorities do not seem to care about attacks on Dalits,” said Vijay Kharat, a resident of Siddharth Nagar in Chembur who was in Bhima Koregaon Monday.

The section of the Eastern Express highway that is north of the sensitive Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar area remained blocked by protesters as late as 7.30 pm. Many cars were abandoned on the roadside as harried motorists walked or took other means of transport home.

On the CST Road in Kurla, nearly 50 people sat on the road outside Baudh Colony around 2 pm, carrying flags and shouting slogans. Around 200-250 people, including a large number of women, came back to the same spot later. As protesters tried to push the policemen to return to block the main Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg, the situation remained tense until about 4 pm. Senior inspector Lalasaheb Sheyte of Kurla police station said 50 policemen and women were deployed.

Outside the Phoenix Market City mall in Kurla, around 25 protesters vandalised two BEST buses around 3 pm. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 5) Rajiv Jain said the situation was brought under control immediately. By late afternoon, it was apparent that despite specific intelligence of a possible fallout of Monday’s incidents in Mumbai, the Mumbai Police failed to cope effectively. According to a senior official, a few preventive arrests were made Monday night, but it was only late Tuesday evening that the police detained 100 protesters.

“Most of these protesters are aged 18-25 years. This is a sensitive issue and one cannot make many preventive detentions and especially of leaders — that might lead to a major law and order breakdown,” said a senior official. Eventually, the Mumbai Police used CCTV footage to detain the 100 protesters. “They were trying to create trouble by pelting stones at public transport vehicles,” said Mumbai Police PRO DCP Sachin Patil.

In Kandivali’s Damu Nagar area, protesters had begun to gather as early as 9.30 am. “A lot of people returned from Pune and word spread. At 10 am, there were around 80 people,” said a constable from the Damu Nagar Chowki. While shopkeepers waited for crowds of protesters to clear out, the tension in the air was palpable. “By 11 am, no shops were open except the medical stores. We were threatened that if we don’t shut down, our shops would be subjected to vandalism,” said the proprietor of an ice-cream store.

According to the protesters, the information to assemble came via WhatsApp messages. Messages circulating on WhatsApp groups included details of incidents at the Jaystambh in Bhima Koregaon and in the nearby villages of Sanaswadi and Vadhu Budruk. Vijay Kale, a resident of Nalanda Buddh Vihar in Damu Nagar, said, “Our relatives were hurt in Pune and not one TV channel reported about it.”

Zonal DCP Dr Vinay Rathod received a letter from the local corporator and other leaders condemning the attack in Pune.

Elsewhere in Mumbai, nearly 200 people gathered in Powai outside the IIT main gate around 2 pm for a ‘chakka jam’. The road was blocked on both sides with traffic snarls stretching up to 4-5 km. Satish Gazdhane (33), one of the protesters, said, “Every year on January 1, we go to Pune for the anniversary of the Bhima Koregaon battle. This time around, however, when I reached there, the shops were shut, no services were available. It all seemed planned so that we feel unwelcome.”

Another protester, Hitesh Bharve, said there were no leaders who called Tuesday’s agitation, and claimed that the crowds comprised those who heard of the community expressing its sentiment and joined in spontaneously.
Apart from JVLR, crowds also gathered at Filterpada, Jai Bhim Nagar and Chandivali. A crowd of nearly 1,000 people came to the Powai police station.

Earlier in the day at Mulund, a group of protesters including Republican Party of India (RPI) activists started protests around 9 am, asking shopkeepers to pull down their shutters. “When our people went to Pune, they were pelted with stones from building terraces. Till the time those responsible are not punished, we will not stop,” said Yogesh Silvant, president of RPI’s Mulund unit.

In central Mumbai, Republican Party of India workers gathered at the NM Joshi Marg police station and submitted a letter requesting permission for a peaceful protest.

They said they had called for a ‘bandh’ in central Mumbai Wednesday. The protesters met the senior police inspector and handed over the application.

In Thane and Navi Mumbai too, organisations have called a ‘bandh’ Wednesday. Thane remained relatively peaceful Tuesday with the protesters only gathering near the Buddh Vihar. Navi Mumbai was affected by long traffic jams. Roads were also obstructed near Rabale by protesters.