Anti-CAA protesters 'lathicharged' by police in UP's Etawah

People protesting against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act were allegedly lathicharged by police in a Muslim-dominated area in Uttar Pradesh's Etawah district even as demonstrations continued against the legislation in Lucknow and Aligarh. A video of the Etawah incident, where policemen can be seen using batons and chasing away protesters in the area on late Tuesday night, has also gone viral on social media.

Violence broke out when police tried to disperse the protesters who were observing a sit-in since Tuesday morning in Pachraha area, defying prohibitory orders imposed there. "Police used force against us while we were holding a peaceful protest. Our brothers and cousins were beaten up and we were abused. We were physically tortured. We have a right to protest," one of the women protesters said.

Responding to the allegations, police said the protesters had staged a dharna defying prohibitory order imposed in the area and pelted them with stones. Police said they had to use mild force to chase the protesters away.

In the video, policemen can be seen entering houses and shops. The sit-in was organised in solidarity with the women protesting at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi against the new legislation.

"Police are citing prohibitory orders to end our protest. What about the large public meetings being held by ministers," another protester said. In Lucknow, protesters at the Clock Tower (Ghantaghar) in old city area of Lucknow held a symbolic 'havan' with Hindu women joining them.

With the Tricolour painted on their cheeks and bands on their wrists, they took part in the 'havan' carrying banners with "CAA wapas lo" (take back CAA) written on them. Women also observed a 'roza' for the withdrawal of the act.

The protest, which has been going on uninterrupted since Friday, saw people expressing themselves against the controversial legislation holding balloons painted in black with 'No CAA, No NRC' written on them. Waving the Tricolour, they held a big cut-out of the map of India having symbols and names of all religions mentioned on it.

Placards reading "No divide and rule, no CAA, no NRC" and "we are here for rights and not for riots" besides portraits of Mahatma Gandhi and Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar were held by young girls and children. The protesters were joined by children and men.

Meanwhile in Aligarh, hundreds of anti-CAA protesters, mostly women, gathered at the Eidgah ground. The protest started on Tuesday evening after Shahar Mufti Abdul Khaliq informed the district authorities that the protesters will hold a peaceful sit-in.

He said keeping in view the sanctity of the Eidgah, a separate enclosure was made for the women observing "purdah". Late Tuesday night, addressing a meeting of the city peace committee, District Magistrate Chandra Bhushan Singh said, "The permission for the Eidgah protest is for a limited period and no permission for a similar protest would be given for any other spot in the city."

Residents of Jamalpur and Dodhpur localities had also approached the district authorities for holding similar protests.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)