Irate residents protest demolition

TENSION GRIPPED Idgah locality in Chunniganj under Bajaria police station when residents forcibly tried to stop the anti-encroachment drive of the Kanpur Municipal Corporation here today. The police had to use mild force to disperse the enraged crowd and a few hooligans were detained.

TENSION GRIPPED Idgah locality in Chunniganj under Bajaria police station when residents forcibly tried to stop the anti-encroachment drive of the Kanpur Municipal Corporation here today. The police had to use mild force to disperse the enraged crowd and a few hooligans were detained.

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The protesters were demanding adequate time before their houses were razed. The drive finally came to an abrupt halt amidst the ruckus created by the residents.

Earlier, the enforcement squad of the KMC reached Idgah locality and started demolishing the illegal settlements. However, no sooner had the drive started, resentment started brewing among the residents who tried to stop the demolition work. Fortunately, the presence of heavy police force prevented the situation from taking an ugly turn. After some time, several women of the locality lay down on the road, blocking the traffic.

The residents also started shouting slogans and virtually forced the enforcement squad to stop work. This even led to heated arguments between the KMC officials and residents of the area. However, the deadlock continued even when the police used mild force to shoo away the crowd and detained a few persons for creating disturbance.

This further irked the residents who gheraoed the Bajaria police station, demanding immediate release of the arrested persons. On receiving the information, district administration officials rushed to the spot and tried to pacify the crowd.

The crowd calmed down when the ACM assured the residents that they would be given two days’ time. Till then, the drive would remain suspended.