BHOPAL: Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPc have been imposed in 44 out of the 52 districts of Madhya Pradesh to prevent possibility of law and order breakdown due to National Register of Citizens (NRC) and Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) related protests and demonstrations.
According to key sources at the MP State Police HQ, the district administration in 44 districts, including Bhopal, Jabalpur, Gwalior and Indore has imposed Section 144 of CrPc, banning all kinds of processions.
But despite prohibitory orders, a protest turning violent was reported from communally sensitive Khandwa town on Thursday afternoon, sources at the state police headquarters told The New Indian Express.
According to sources, with Section 144 of CrPc already clamped in Khandwa district, protestors hailing from a particular community were only granted permission to hold dharna at the Eidgah Maidan in Khandwa town for three hours on Thursday, but permission was denied for carrying out any kind of procession.
After the protest at Eidgah Maidan, while most protestors left the place, a group of the protestors subsequently tried to take out a procession from Imlipura locality. However, barricades and police personnel stopped the group of protestors from taking the procession further in Pardeshipura area.
With the protesters hell-bent at going ahead with the procession towards Bada Bum locality, the police had to use force to push the protestors back. Irked over it, some protestors pelted stones on the police and also damaged at least two four-wheelers parked on the road. The police subsequently used more force to disperse the protesting mob.
Meanwhile, keeping in mind violent incidents during anti-NRC-CAA protests in various parts of the country, all kinds of processions have been banned in pursuance of Section 144 of CrPc in 44 of the 52 districts.
Also, strict action would be initiated against those making inflammatory and provocative social media posts that could endanger law and order situation.
MP public relations and law minister PC Sharma said, “Everyone has the right to peacefully voice their protest and Section 144 is just a protective section to ensure that all exercise restraint.”
When questioned by journalists about any inputs of specific sections likely to indulge in violent incidents in the guise of anti-NRC-CAA protests, Sharma said, “Since the Kamal Nath government launched a war against adulteration and land mafia, those involved in such acts as well as those behind such people have been trying to disturb the situation by sneaking into such protests for making them violent. Those trying to sneak into these protests to disturb situation may also be from the opposition BJP, but we’ll trace all those trying to make peaceful protests violent,” said Sharma.