NEW DELHI: “We haven’t slept since Sunday night. We had apprehended that something like this (violence) will happen and it did. Many rumours were doing the rounds and people are being provoked, mostly youths are falling prey,” said Jehangir Khan, a resident of Maujpur. “Wo log aaye, pehle pathhar fenka phir gaadi mein aag laga diya (some people came, first they threw stones and then set a vehicle on fire)… then stone pelting took place from both sides. We were mute spectators.”
A teary-eyed Sheznaaz Khatoon, who was seeking help from the police, said, “My daughter has not returned home from school. She doesn’t have a mobile and I can’t contact her.” Now, a blame game is on in areas such as Jaffrabad, Karawal Nagar, Bhajanpura and Khajuri Khas. Some claimed that locals took matter in their own hands after hearing that Muslim women were sitting on a demonstration near Babarpur.
“Sitting on dharna and blocking the road is not acceptable. It is already going on at Shaheen Bagh and didn’t want the same to happen in Babarpur. They (protesters) have no idea how much trouble it causes to daily commuters,” said Alok Kumar, a businessman from Bhajanpura.
Some said an uneasy calm pervades since the Delhi polls. “The news of women sitting on the protest spread like wildfire. People formed anti-CAA and pro-CAA groups and began demonstrating,” said Satish Pandey, who works with a private firm. Ram Charan Singh, who has been living in Karawal Nagar for 62 years, said he has never seen such large mob screaming ‘Jai Shri Ram’. “A 200-strong mob roamed the streets in saffron scarves. Karawal Nagar is a Hindu-majority area but never have I seen so much angst and rage.”