Low turnout mars protest march at India Gate

Things obviously did not turn out as planned during Sunday’s protest march at India Gate against the acquittal of ABVP activists in the Professor H C Sabharwal murder case.

Things obviously did not turn out as planned during Sunday’s protest march at India Gate against the acquittal of ABVP activists in the Professor H C Sabharwal murder case.

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Organised by Sabharwal’s son Himanshu, the protest witnessed a low turnout. One of the reasons could be the murder of Himanshu’s close aide Parminder Singh.

Singh’s body was found near Khalsa College in the Maurice Nagar area of North Campus by a passer-by on Thursday. The mystery shrouding the incident and intense questioning of the protest organisers, the ones who had been working closely with Singh for the last couple of days, has forced many to lie low.

The morale was further hit when Himanshu and 15 others were detained for some time for organising the protest without permission.

“Though we still support the cause, the murder has generated some fear,” a person working closely with organisers, said on the condition of anonymity.

“So some of us from the core group have been forced to back out.” Himanshu blamed the low turnout on the “the incident that has created an atmosphere of confusion and intimidation”.“People are now under the impression that their safety is in jeopardy,” he said.