CHENNAI: Raising their voice against mob violence, the nationwide #NotInMyName protest took a different form in Chennai. A #BreakTheSilence demonstration that took place in the city on Saturday, saw over 600 people from all walks of life come together to express dissent towards violence.
The country-wide protests on June 28 were triggered by the latest case of lynching, where 16-year-old Hafiz Junaid was publicly murdered in a crowded train while returning home after a shopping trip to Delhi on the eve of Eid. The demonstration organised by the Citizens for Peace, Justice and Democracy in Chennai, emphasised that these incidents must not be treated in isolation but be viewed as a manifestation of the institutional violence against minorities. Twenty-eight Indians have been killed and 124 injured since 2010 in cow-related violence.
The demonstration opposed the power people derive from the ordinances issued by some State governments and the Centre to ‘regulate’ trade and handling of cattle, particularly the cow. Attacks by ‘cow vigilantes’ have mostly affected all those whose work has to do with cattle such as butchers, cattle traders, farmers and those who dispose of dead cows. People have also been assaulted for eating beef.
While the protest emerged in the context of mob violence caused by ‘cow vigilantes’, it addressed diverse forms of marginalisation. Persons with disability, the queer community, environmentalists and conservationists, journalists, activists, performing artists and student groups composed the citizen group that used music, dance and other forms of art to “break the silence against saffronisation of the society”.
“Saffron is not in my rainbow”, “only COWards target children, minorities, Dalits and poor farmers”, “Stand against Hate,” were among some of the slogans raised at the protest with an emerging message that Indian diversity cannot be painted with one identity, even if coercion is used. Citizens demanded that the government addresses targeted violence.