The Nagpada police arrested former MLA Fayyaz Ahmed from the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) and retired Assistant Commissioner of Police Shamsher Khan Pathan after they allegedly got into a scuffle with the women protesting at Mumbai Bagh on Friday.
The protest, which is being conducted on a relay basis from Mumbai Central and nearby areas, entered its 55th day on Saturday amidst concerns raised by various quarters of society over the ongoing novel coronavirus crisis. The women have themselves thinned out to ensure they maintain a safe distance from each other.
Maaz Azim, a volunteer, said, “The women are trying to continue the protest in shifts and are ensuring that not more than 50 people are present at a time. No one is thinking of putting an end to the protest, but a rumour was spread that some people are in favour of calling it off as a precautionary measure. This led to a conflict between two groups.”
He said it was during this time that Mr. Pathan and Mr. Ahmed were asked to leave by the police deployed at the spot, as all the men apart from the core protesters were being cleared out. The duo, however, refused, which worsened the situation.
“Mr. Pathan has contributed a lot in this protest and has helped the women whenever required, but that does not give him the right to disrespect any of them. In the past too, he had shown unpleasant behaviour towards women and alleged that they are taking a part in the protest for money. This had infuriated the crowd already and Friday’s events only antagonised them further,” Mr. Azim said.
He said the police was very cooperative and controlled the situation efficiently. Senior police inspector Shalini Sharma immediately called in reinforcements and took the duo into custody.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone III) Abhinash Kumar confirmed to The Hindu that both Mr. Pathan and Mr. Ahmed had been arrested. While Ms. Sharma could not be reached for comment, an officer with the Nagpada police said the duo have been booked for assault and outraging a woman’s modesty under the Indian Penal Code.
Mr. Azim said a decision is yet to be taken regarding the protest with respect to the Janata Curfew that is to be observed on Sunday.
