Hundreds of Bengalureans gathered at Freedom Park Sunday to oppose SIR and condemn the detention of activists in the country
Aditi S, one of those detained and later released, said she was injured during the incident.
There were people even in civil clothing handling the protesters,” she said. Pratik Khedkar, another protester, said the demand for CEC’s resignation was straightforward. This govt especially fears any form of protest,” he said. The organisers concluded the Freedom Park demonstration by singing the national anthem and said protests would continue until their demands were met.
Bengaluru: “Asking questions isn’t anarchy. Abusing power is. The gathering also saw members of student organisations, including the All India Students’ Association (AISA). She also questioned the Congress-led Karnataka govt’s position on the right to protest. “We started the march from Freedom Park and were all detained… Police were brutally pulling our legs. I did get injured in the process. “People aren’t happy with a govt official; they just want him to resign. There’s nothing too big here.
These were the words on a placard held aloft at Freedom Park Sunday, as hundreds of citizens and students gathered to oppose the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, demand chief election commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation and condemn the detention of protesters a day earlier. Its members had attempted to march from Freedom Park towards the ECI office on Saturday but were detained by police. Police said on Saturday that AISA members were detained for allegedly breaching the designated protest site when they tried to march from Freedom Park towards the ECI office. No detentions were reported on Sunday.