CHENNAI: Chennai had its Shaheen Bagh moment as protests in Old Washermanpet continued for the second consecutive day on Saturday. Meanwhile, Chennai police commissioner A K Viswanathan met Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami to brief him about the law and order situation in the city. Additional police strength has been deployed in different places including Alandur, Tambaram, Red Hills and ECR.
Thousands had gathered in the locality on Friday to protest the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). However, after police action against protesters, including detention and lathi-charge, the crowds continued the protest, now against police brutality, through the night. Police released the detained protesters late Friday following talks with the community, but protests against CAA and police action were also seen in Madurai, Tirunelveli, Nagercoil, and other parts of the State on Friday and Saturday.
On Saturday, although the crowds had thinned, hundreds of people, including women and children, still thronged the area near the Pencil Factory to make a statement against the CAA and the police brutality of Friday night.
‘Caning has only made us stronger’
A new group of protesters were also seen near the Washermanpet metro station. “Over 50 of our brothers are severely injured and we need justice for them,” said Asifa Begum, a protester near the Pencil Factory.
According to the protesters, the peaceful protest on Friday turned violent only after the police used force against them. However, Viswanathan, speaking to reporters, reiterated that no protestor was injured, showing that police had maintained restraint despite the protest being held without permission. Viswanathan visited Apollo and Stanley hospitals to meet the police officers, injured at Old Washermanpet on Friday.
The injured police officers were, joint commissioner P Vijayakumari, inspector Rajkumar and AR constables Kala and Udayakumari.On Saturday evening, police also released a five-minute video showing protestors pushing barricades towards the police. The protesters at Old Washermanpet pointed to different videos of Friday’s events. “See the videos, the police kicked and dragged people who were just standing quietly. It was day-light brutality and the police humiliated people,’’ said Asifa.
Many people had brought their toddlers, some on their shoulders, to the protests. There were school and college children in large numbers too.“Police thought violence would disperse us, but it has only made us stronger,” Umar Hussain, a protester, said. Near the Pencil Factory, the body of the 70-year-old, who died of natural causes near the protests area on Friday, was brought in. The protesters offered prayers and respects.