The S.J. Park police arrested a 24-year-old person for allegedly holding a placard which read “Muslim, Dalit, Kashmiri, Bahujan, Adivasi, Trans Liberation Now” in English and Kannada on Friday afternoon at Town Hall here.
The protester, identified as Ardra Narayanan, was confronted by organisations that were agitating for strict action to be taken against Amulya Leona, a 19-year-old student who had shouted “Pakistan zindabad” at a CAA protest rally on Thursday and has been slapped with sedition charges.
Chethan Singh Rathore, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central), said that Ardra Narayanan was a resident of Malleswaram and a freelance graphic designer. According to the police, Ardra Narayanan came to Town Hall to stage a protest against “injustice in the nation”. The person saw the agitation and decided to keep some distance from those there. According to the police, the protesters surrounded the person and accused Ardra Narayanan of shouting pro-Pakistan slogans. As the situation became tense, the S.J. Park police whisked Ardra Narayanan away, and later took up a suo motu case against the protester. Mr. Rathore clarified that pro-Pakistan slogans were not raised by the accused.
The protester has been booked under the provision of Section 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language etc.) and 153B (Imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration) of the IPC. “The person was produced before a magistrate and was remanded in 14 days judicial custody,” the police said.
Mohan Gowda, spokesperson for Hindu Jagarana Vedike, which was part of the protest, however, said that Ardra Narayanan silently joined them around 12.15 p.m.
“There were around 200 persons from Hindu Jagaran Vedike, Hindu Mahasabha, and other organisations to protest against Ms. Amulya’s pro-Pakistan slogan. We were about to end our protest and had started folding our banners. A few people noticed a person holding placards behind us. They questioned the person,” Mr. Gowda said.
He later filed a complaint with the police.
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