Women protesters resume agitation against CAA at Mohammad Ali Park

Kanpur: Two days after the anti-CAA protesters called off their sit-in and vacated the Mohammad Ali Park in Chamanganj area of the city, scores of women protesters, allegedly from the other faction, on late Sunday night, assembled at the same place and staged a sit-in against the CAA.
Locals of the area, however, said that there was a tension in the area when police, on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday, arrived at the spot and started forcibly removing the protesters from the park. However, the women, instead of leaving the spot, started staging a road blockade at the nearby Inspector Road and demanded that they are allowed to hold demonstration inside the park to raise their voice against the CAA and NRC.
Later, more protestors, including men and women, joined and the number soon swelled into several thousand.
In order to avoid any kind of backlash, the district administration requisitioned more police force but the protesters refused to lift the road blockade even after repeatedly being warned of strict police action, said eyewitnesses. Sensing the gravity of the situation, police later allowed the demonstrators to resume their sit-in at the Mohammad Ali Park.
The women have been staging the sit-in at Mohammad Ali Park in Chamanganj and Tikuniya Park at Babupurwa since January 7 and January 19, respectively, to demand rollback of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
The protesters at both the sites had called off their sit-in after submitting a memorandum to the district and police authorities after getting an assurance from the administration on Saturday that it would withdraw the cases lodged as part of preventive action against them.
Many protesters at Mohammad Ali Park, however, stayed back, said, eyewitnesses.
“Police, on coming to know about the sit-in, rushed to the spot and asked the protesters to vacate the park on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday. When the protesters refused to budge, the cops at around 4.30 am on Monday, forcibly removed them. The protesters, however, returned later in the day,” they added.
The district and police officials told them that they have instructions not to allow people to stage protests there as the prohibitory orders were in force.
Meanwhile, the women protesters, staging a road blockade, alleged that the district administration and police have done this to prevent people from voicing their opinion against CAA and NRC which discriminate on the basis of religion and violates the Constitution.
DIG Anant Deo, however, claimed that a different faction of women has started the protest on Sunday.
“They are being instigated by some outsiders. We will investigate and locate thosewho are instigating the protesters,” the DIG added.
To recall, last Thursday, the district administration had slapped notices on 66 residents of Chamanganj area to sign security bonds of Rs 2 lakh for maintaining law and order at Mohammad Ali Park where women protesters have dug in their heels.
The notices were issued to them under Section 107/117 of the CrPC which empowers a magistrate to direct a person to furnish security bonds pending an inquiry.