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India Gate, next stop in wrestlers’ protest plan, cordoned off by Delhi cops
The wrestlers on Tuesday announced that they’ll sit on a hunger strike at India Gate after immersing their medals in the Ganga as “there is no reason to live without our medals”
NEW DELHI: A day after the country’s top wrestlers announced a plan to launch an indefinite hunger strike at India Gate, the Delhi police on Wednesday cordoned off the memorial and barred public entry to the lawns.
There was no formal announcement by the city police about the decision to bar the entry of the public. But early on Wednesday, the underpass leading to the India Gate lawns was blocked for pedestrian visitors but vehicles were allowed to pass on the roads running across the lawns. Policemen were also deployed at different points to ensure that people did not make their way to the lawns. “The grass was damaged in the recent rains. To help the grass grow, they needed to be left alone for a day or two without the public stomping it,” the officer said.
“It is also a preventive measure by us to keep the wrestlers away from landing up here to protest,” he finally said.
The Delhi police on Sunday prevented the wrestlers from marching to the new Parliament building on Sunday and later dismantled their tents at the Jantar Mantar protest site where the wrestlers have been protesting since April 23 to demand the arrest of the Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, a BJP MP from Gonda who has ruled Indian wrestling for 12 years, over allegations of sexual harassment of players, including a minor. Police also booked the organisers of the protest on charges of rioting and unlawful assembly. Singh has denied the charges.
On Tuesday, Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Bajrang Punia, Rio Games bronze medallist Sakshi Malik, and double World Championship bronze medallist Vinesh Phogat, who have fronted the agitation against the BJP MP, said they will immerse their medals in Ganga and also that they will sit on an indefinite hunger strike at India Gate as “there is no reason to live without our medals”.
They did drive over 200km to Haridwar to immerse their medals - they together have 45 senior international medals between them — but after sitting at Har Ki Paudi on the bank of Ganga for 90 minutes, they were persuaded by Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) president Naresh Tikait, to hold off for now. Tikait, who took away the medals from the wrestlers and kept them in his custody, sought five days from the wrestlers to ensure their demands are met.
“If they want to protest again in Delhi and submit an application to us, we will find one of the alternative protest spots in the city, but not Jantar Mantar,” Suman Nalwa, spokesperson for the Delhi Police, said earlier.
The Delhi police have made it clear that the wrestlers will not be allowed to return to Jantar Mantar or India Gate to protest.
“Let them submit an application to the New Delhi deputy commissioner of police (DCP) seeking this permission. But it is unlikely we’ll allow them to protest at India Gate since that site is not marked as a protest venue,” said a senior police officer.
Suman Nalwa, spokesperson for the Delhi Police, earlier made it clear that Jantar Mantar was out of bounds for them. “If they want to protest again in Delhi and submit an application to us, we will find one of the alternative protest spots in the city, but not Jantar Mantar,” Nalwa said earlier.
