Prophet row: Strict police bandobast in Mumbai as protests erupt across several parts of India

Mumbai: Strict police bandobast was deployed at and around mosques all over the city on Friday, in light of the numerous protests that erupted around the country against suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma’s recent comments.

Sharma had last month made derogatory comments about Prophet Mohammed, which had elicited fury not just from all over India but from several other countries as well. Sharma was subsequently suspended from her post and issued an apology, while FIRs were also registered against her in Mumbai, Thane and Delhi.

On Friday, protests were observed in several parts of the country, including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Maharahstra. As soon as the first reports of the massive mob gathering outside the Jama Masjid came in, the Mumbai Police top brass immediately alerted all its personnel. Instructions were issued to rush additional units to all mosques in the city and additional reinforcements were also kept on standby.

“Tight deployment was put into place all over the city. Zonal Deputy Commissioners of Police were also in constant touch with religious leaders in their respective jurisdictions to ensure peace. No untoward incidents were reported anywhere,” Mumbai Police spokesperson DCP Sanjay Latkar said.

Instances were observed in areas like Dharavi and Nagpada, where members of the Muslim community gathered inside the mosques and voiced their fury over Sharma’s remarks.

“There were a couple of spots where the people tried to spill out on the road with placards, but they were quickly counselled and asked to not start an unscheduled protest without due permissions. The people complied with our instructions and no escalations were reported,” a senior Mumbai Police officer said.

Another officer said that all social media platforms, too, are being continuously monitored for any potentially inflammatory content connected to the issue. Any tweets or Facebook posts that might lead to communal disharmony will quickly be flagged and removed, officers said.

Meanwhile, on the second day of their drive, the Mumbai Traffic Police took action against a total of 6635 offenders for violating the rule. Of these, 3631 were pillion riders, 2572 were drivers and 432 cases were observed where neither the driver or the pillion riders were wearing helmets.