#ChennaiShaheenBagh: Anti-CAA protests erupt across Tamil Nadu after police brutality against protesters in Chennai
On Friday night, the Chennai Police had tried to forcefully evict the protesters who had gathered near the Old Washermenpet area in Chennai to protest against CAA, NRC, and NPR.
Spontaneous protests erupted across Tamil Nadu on Friday night condemning the police brutality against protesters who had been demonstrating against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) at Washermanpet area in Chennai.
Protest continues overnight allover Tamil Nadu with people demanding the release of protestors who have been detained by the Police in Chennai and also to take disciplinary action against the Police who engaged in violence at Washermanpet.
— ???????? | ???????????????? (@Its_DineshKumar) February 15, 2020
| #CAAProtest #ChennaiShaheenBagh pic.twitter.com/pF0l6a7XHe
Tiruppur, Vellore, Batlangundu, Tiruchy, Coimbatore, Tenkasi, Nagercoil, Madurai, Pudukottai, Ooty, Tanjore, Cuddalore, Kanyakumari, and many parts of Chennai witnessed midnight protests demanding the immediate release of people who were detained by the police from Washermanpet area.
Tiruppur now...
— #StandWithKashmir (@TrailorSmith) February 14, 2020
டேய் கல்லாப்பெட்டி சிங்காரம் நீ தப்பு பண்ணிட்ட... எங்க மேல கை வச்சுருக்க கூடாது நீ.... pic.twitter.com/93v6aHqIGQ
What happened in Washermanpet:
After the Friday afternoon prayers at a local mosque, a few hundred people gathered on a road near the Old Washermanpet area to protest against the CAA, NRC, and NPR. As the news of the protest began to spread, more and more people, both men and women alike, joined the protest site. By the evening the numbers increased from a few hundred to a few thousand. The Chennai Police started to deploy more police personnel in the area and asked the protesters to disperse. The protesters refused to do so. The situation escalated after some protesters were reportedly forcibly removed from the protest site, leading to an altercation between them and the police.
Police brutality:
The police, in an unprovoked move, started to remove the protesters forcefully from the protest site at around 7. 30 pm. In a video taken at around 8 pm, dozens of policemen can be seen dragging protesters away from the protest site forcefully. They can be seen manhandling, kicking, slapping, and forcefully evicting protesters.
Shame on you @chennaipolice_ and shame on you @CMOTamilNadu. Why are you afraid of peaceful protestors? The videos, images and news coming from Washermanpet are shocking. #ChennaiShaheenBagh @anticaaTNpic.twitter.com/VytS7XBhYq
— Jeni (@JenishaRani) February 14, 2020
The News Minute reported a woman protester recalling how the women detainees were severely “wounded from being manhandled” and the police had threatened to remand them at the Trichy jail.
#ChennaiShaheenBagh holding strong. @Shaheenbaghoff1 Washermanpet sisters will win! pic.twitter.com/yfCzOyPPqD
— Gayatri Khandhadai (@gayatrikl) February 15, 2020
The police said four cops, including a woman deputy commissioner, two women personnel, and a sub-inspector were injured in stone-pelting.
Chennai Police Commissioner AK Viswanathan held talks with Muslim groups in Washermanpet. Some of the protesters who were detained during the anti-CAA and NRC protests have now been released.
Many Muslim organisations and opposition political parties have condemned the Friday violence against peaceful protesters.