After violent clashes in Seelampur region of east Delhi following protests over the Citizenship Amendment Act on Tuesday, the Delhi Police arrested six people on Wednesday in connection with the violence.
Anti-CAA Protest: Six arrested for Seelampur violence
The police imposed prohibitory orders (Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, or CrPC) in the entire north-east Delhi on Wednesday, in view of the law and order situation. Various police teams are also carrying out patrolling on the streets of Seelampur.
Meanwhile, the Joint commissioner of police (eastern range) Alok Kumar said that the areas will remain under surveillance for the next few hours. He said they are working closely with peacekeeping committees of the areas to ensure such violence is not repeated.
He also said that news of some stone pelting was also received from Brijpuri in Mustafabad where reinforcements have been sent and there are no casualties so far with the situation being taken under control by the police well on time.
The additional DCP, north-east, RP Meena said, “The police is in the process of verifying the role of six people in the violence, whom they have arrested for instigating violence. All are local residents. Their criminal background is being checked. We are checking CCTV footage to identify more miscreants.”
According to a police personnel, the protest began around 12 pm on Tuesday. The protesters initially held a “silent protest” against the new citizenship law for an hour. But later as things began to wrap up, a few unidentified, bare-chested youths hurled bricks at police personnel who were keeping an eye on the gathering. Soon, some from the crowd vandalised buses, triggering police to retaliate with lathi-charge and teargas. A public toilet next to a police picket was also set on fire. The police personnel had responded by firing tear gas shells to disperse the crowd.
As the violence erupted, the Delhi Police used drones to monitor the situation and identify potential trouble zones. At least 21 people were injured including 6 locals, 12 police personnel and three Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel. Among the vehicles damaged by the protesters was a school van. They also torched three motorcycles and tried to set ablaze a police post on the main road between Seelampur and Jaffrabad. The entry and exit gates of seven Metro stations on this stretch were closed and traffic was also diverted.
