Protests against CAA and NRC continue at Shaheen Bagh

New Delhi: As protests against CAA and NRC continued at Shaheen Bagh on Sunday, many rumours started that the Delhi Police has deployed its forces and protesters will be removed from their place. Shaheen Bagh grabbed a lot of attention as hundreds of women sat in the bone-chilling cold and protested throughout the day and night.

However, as the rumors of the violence spread, the place was brimming with hundreds of people. "These are just rumors, and those who want to create violence, tell them we will not move. We are peaceful and you cannot move us," said a woman protester.

The organizer at Shaheen Bagh also said that "few elements" want to disrupt the protest and intimidate the protesters.

"We had asked the shopkeepers in the vicinity whether we can give food near their shops. At first, they agreed, however, the next moment they refused. At the same time, a few policemen came to move the barricades. This created a chaos among the people and a rumor was started," said Abid Sheikh, one of the organisers.

Another organizer said nothing is going to move the crowd from their place. He added that local political leaders belonging to "BJP party are trying to create violence."

"We have been informed that some BJP members who own some shops in the vicinity have been calling the police. But the police has not done anything as of now," said the organizer.

Meanwhile, as the protest entered its 23rd day, the shops around the area have been closed ever since. This has created a lot of issues for the shopkeepers who say that their rent is high. "Since the shops have been shut, we have experienced a lot of loss. Each shop here gives out a rent of about 3 lakh per month," said Adil, who owns a brand shop at Shaheen Bagh.

Other shopkeepers standing with Adil also complained about how their business is being affected.

"It's not like we don't support the issue. For the first three days, we were ourselves there, but this has to end, of course. It has been 23 days, our shops are shut," said Adil.

The shopkeepers also said that each day the market experiences the loss in crores. On asking whether they called the police, Adil said, "We tried talking to the protesters, but they shooed us away. We haven't done anything ever since. There is a local BJP MLA, who owns some shops in the area, he called the police."

The Station House Officer did come, but no decision was taken. However, the main Jasola road leading up to Shaheen Bagh has been barricaded.

"How can they try to remove peaceful protesters from here," said a protester.

Meanwhile, as protest at JNU escalated rumours started spreading that the police might remove the protesters at night. "To remove people from Shaheen Bagh, such situation is being created. We urge people to stay here," said a group of activists.