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An attempt of Lucknow police to spread awareness about coronavirus among anti-CAA protesters staging sit-in at Hussainabad Clock Tower turned murky and ended in a scuffle on Thursday afternoon.
A police team reached the dharna venue to make the protesters see reason on the spread of coronavirus and lower their presence at the site.
Some youths working as volunteers however intervened and opposed the police move. This led to a scuffle between the cops and the youths. the protesting women too pitched in for the youths and started raising slogans against the government and the police.
Later, additional police force was rushed to the scene along with two senior police officers after which the situation could be brought control.
The protesters accused the police of taking oppressive measures and assaulting them. They also alleged that there were no woman cops in the team.
“They pulled down the tent under which we are sitting and also took blankets and other items during the scuffle,” they alleged.
ADCP (West) Vikas Tripathi denied that the police cane-charged the protesters. He said that a police team had gone there to make the protesters aware of the threat of coronavirus and prevent its spread by not assembling in large numbers.
“The team spotted youths assembled at the protest venue and asked them to leave the place. This resulted in a verbal spat after which the police initiated preventive measures to dispel the mob,” he said.
Communist Party of India (Marxists-Leninist) state secretary Sudhakar Yadav condemned the police action against women protesters and said that the Bharatiya Janata Party government was functioning in an autocratic manner.
Yadav said the policemen did not spare even elderly women at the protest site and caned them.
“Due to the cane-charge and stampede that followed, several women fainted at the protest venue,” he alleged.