Threatened and heckled: An HT reporter’s experience while covering protests in Mumbai

Trouble started after a group of protesters halted traffic on SV Road

Threats of physical violence, intimidation and attempts to damage my property — this was my experience of covering the protests in Goregaon.

Protests turned violent in various parts of Mumbai on Wednesday. (Satish Bate/HT Photo)

The trouble started after a group of protesters halted traffic at SV Road. I tried to ask them what their demands were, but they dismissed me saying, “Go read the news”. On noticing another group aggressively blocking a biker, I took a photograph. This angered a woman, who pushed me and demanded an explanation for my actions. I told her I was there as a reporter covering the protest, and asked her not to push me again. She denied having pushed me and started yelling, which attracted the attention of a few people, who surrounded us.

A man next to me saw that I had begun writing a caption for the photo and asked me not to publish it on social media. One after another, the protesters demanded my phone be taken away. A man, who appeared to be in his fifties, grabbed my arm and demanded that I delete the photo.

Afraid that the violence might escalate, I called Vikram Deshmane, the local deputy commissioner of police. He asked me to find the nearest policeman. It was only after I turned around that I realised there were more than 30 men surrounding me. That’s when the fear hit. Deshmane kept talking to me, eventually guiding me to a van near the petrol pump, where a senior officer briefed a sub-inspector and asked him to ensure my safety. The crowd surrounding me had grown larger by then and I heard a protester saying he would bash my head in. I avoided eye contact, fearing any reaction on my part would agitate the crowd further. A man, who appeared to be drunk, tried to charge at me twice. Fortunately, members of the crowd kept him at bay as they did not want the protests to turn violent.