Members of a right-wing group gathered on Sunday afternoon at Shaheen Bagh.
Dozens of members of a right-wing group gathered on Sunday afternoon at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi, the heart of protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act or CAA, and asked the police to evacuate the anti-CAA protesters. The pro-CAA protests by members of Hindu Sena came a day after a man fired shots at Shaheen Bagh, triggering panic in the area.
As slogans were raised against the anti-CAA sit-in amid heavy police presence, cops removed posters that said the site of sit-in would be cleared soon. Police were also seen dispersing protesters.
On Saturday, another right wing group - Dev Sena - had given a call to hold such protests at Shaheen Bagh but they had later released a press statement that they were withdrawing the call due to appeals made by police for peace.
In a letter, the ruling Aam Admi Party in Delhi on Saturday wrote to the Election Commission saying that the party has been informed through sources that "anti-social elements in connivance with certain political parties are planning to create unrest and violence on February 2 to subvert law and order in Delhi" ahead of elections on February 8.
Two day-light shootings have taken place in Delhi at anti-CAA protests in quick succession after controversial slogans of "Goli Maaro Sa***n Ko (shoot the traitors)" were chanted on Monday campaign rally of Anurag Thakur, the Union Minister of State for Finance, who was part of the team involved in Budget 2020 announced on Saturday. Mr Thakur was banned from campaigning in Delhi for three days for egging on BJP workers to shout the "Goli Maaro" slogans.
A 25-year-old man, identified as Kapil Gujjar, was caught by police on Saturday after he opened fire in the Shaheen Bagh area. The shooter was also heard saying: "Humare desh mein sirf Hinduon ki chalegi aur kisi ki nahi (in our country only Hindus will prevail)." He had allegedly come to the area in an auto.
On Thursday, a 17-year-old fired at protesters near Jamia Millia Islamia University. Behind him, a large number of policemen in riot gear seemed frozen to the spot.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal slammed Home Minister Amit Shah, to whose ministry the Delhi Police reports to, over the two shooting incidents. "What have you done to our Delhi, Amit Shah ji? Bullets are being fired in broad daylight... Law and order is being criticised constantly. Elections will come and go, politics will keep happening, but for the sake of the people of Delhi, please focus on fixing law and order," he tweeted.
The Shaheen Bagh protest has attracted attention from across the country in the protests against the CAA or the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, which makes religion a criterion for citizenship. Critics say the law discriminates against Muslims as only non-Muslims from neighbouring Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh can become Indian citizens if they fled religious persecution and entered India before 2015.
Of late, critics of the Shaheen Bagh protests, mainly pro-CAA activists, have attacked the month-long sit-in on a key road in Delhi connecting to Noida. They say the protest has become a traffic nightmare for commuters.