Parts of Kanpur remained tense till late on Saturday as gunfire, arson and a power shutdown were reported from Talaq Mahal and Yateemkhana, even as mobile and internet services remain suspended in several districts in the state, including Kanpur, due to the ongoing anti-Citizenship Amendment Act stir. Three persons in these localities, including a police constable, received gunshot injuries on Saturday. The Yateemkhana police post and several vehicles were set on fire, and heavy police force was deployed in the area.
The state-wide death toll of the protestors now stands at 17 — two were killed in alleged police firing in Babupurwa area of Kanpur on Friday. A protester was killed in gunfire in Rampur, which saw protests break out on Saturday.
Inspector General (IG) of Police, Law and Order Praveen Kumar confirmed that 15 people have died since Friday, including four in Meerut and two each in Kanpur, Firozabad, Bijnor and Sambhal, and one each in Rampur and Muzaffarnagar. On Thursday, one person died in Lucknow. Hospital records show that in all, five persons have died in Meerut, while an eight year old boy was crushed to death in a stampede in Varanasi, after the police dispersed protestors. Kumar maintains that none of the deaths are due to police firing.
On Saturday, the All India Union Muslim League organised a sit-in protest at Dr Berry Crossing, which saw many people move towards Yateemkhana after the protest was over. The demonstrators demanded compensation to the families of victims who were killed in Friday’s alleged police firing, and the withdrawal of all criminal cases against protesters. As they reached the Talaq Mahal-Yateemkhana stretch, the police attempted to push them back.
Additional Director General of Police (Kanpur zone) Prem Prakash also spoke to Babupurwa residents along with Senior Superintendent of Police Anant Deo and District Magistrate Vijay Vishwas Pant over the issue of a peaceful burial of the deceased.
The IG added that at least 705 people have been arrested so far and 124 first information reports have been registered across the state — at least 11 more were arrested on Saturday in Kanpur and another 22 in Gorakhpur, where protests had occurred Friday.
Kumar said that police deployment has increased in over a dozen of districts, and central paramilitary forces are in Kanpur, Meerut, Ferozabad, Rampur and Sambhal. A senior home department official told HT that the mobile and broadband internet shutdown has been extended till December 23 in at least 15 districts.
Hundreds of people gathered on Saturday morning at Rampur’s Hathi Khana Chowk, following which the police resorted to baton charge and tear gas to disperse them. The police claim that protestors too opened fire with illegal firearms, leading to the death of one protestor.
ADG (Bareilly Zone) Avinash Chandra said that the police had detained 500 persons, including Swar legislator Abdullah Azam.
Aftermath of protests
Lucknow remained peaceful for the second consecutive after Thursday’s clashes that killed Mohammed Wakeel, a resident of Hussainabad. In Babupurwa, an uneasy calm prevailed a day after 13 people were allegedly shot by the police, of whom two died.
“It’s the magnitude of torture, we were subjected to. The police attacked our children who were protesting peacefully and opened fire from the front. It was no less than a second Jalianwala Bagh massacre. In no time our 11 people were shot,” said Mohammed Gulfam, 48, a local shopkeeper and eyewitness.
Another resident, Nasreen, in her mid-40s, said that she was not a participant but faced police action, when they ransacked the locality and entered homes looking for protestors. “Most of us belong to the lower strata of the society. Some works at the biscuit factory, some run small businesses. The damage caused by the police has affected us both mentally and physically. We were not the one who staged demonstrations. Why we were targeted and that too in a way that they event didn’t spared children and women?”
Maulana Mukarram, vice president of Jamiat-e Ulema-Hind in Muzaffarnagar near Meerut said that he and other leaders had appealed to the people on Friday to disperse after prayers, and not protest. Meerut saw clashes between the police and protesters, particularly in Hapur Road, Tarapuri and Lisari Gate. Five persons died.
In Gorakhpur, FIRs against 950 unknown people and 22 known persons was lodged in Kotwali police station on Saturday. Over 50 more were booked for violation of section 144, which prohibits gathering of four or more persons at a place as a riot-prevention method. “CCTV footage is being examined to identify those who indulged in violence,” VP Singh, a police official said. The police put up posters of 50 ‘Wanted’ protestors in public places, and even announced a cash reward for information about their whereabouts.
On Friday, protests broke out in three areas, as protestors who offered namaz wearing black ribbons around their arms, came out into the streets. The peaceful protest also saw several persons raise the Indian flag. However, the situation soon devolved and the police fired teargas at the protestors.
“I think the protest turned violent because the police and administration stopped people from protesting peacefully against CAA,” a local shopkeeper from Reti said.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav too came out against the CAA and the proposed NRC, and said on Saturday, “We are not in favour of CAA and NRC and will oppose them at all levels. In a democracy, it’s the right of the people to protest and express themselves, but violence has no place in it. People should put forth their opinions and voices in a peaceful manner.”
