Police pickets posted atMANUU, UoH

Police pickets have been posted at the Maulana Azad National Urdu University and University of Hyderabad here following the scrapping of Article 370 that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

As a precautionary measure, the pickets were posted in the wake of recent developments (over Kashmir issue), a senior police official told PTI, adding there have been no issues pertaining to law and order.

He refuted reports that prohibitory order under CrPC Section 144 has been clamped in the area.

Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) empowers an executive magistrate to prohibit an assembly of more than four persons in an area.

The police official said they have promulgated Section 30 of the Police Act, 1861, for the regulation of public assemblies, processions and meetings, adding the prohibitory orders under Section 30 are imposed every month on regular basis and there was nothing new in this.

UoH administration sources said no protests were held on Wednesday and Tuesday in the university and that peaceful atmosphere prevailed.

University authorities planned to revise the circular issued earlier prohibiting any protests and agitations in the campus until further orders as section 144 was in place, the sources said.

The circular was issued based on a communication from Gachibowli police that no protests be held as prohibitory orders under Section 144 are in place.

However, with the Cyberabad police commissionerate clarifying that no such orders have been issued, the university planned to revise the circular (revoking assembly of five or more persons), the sources said.

The normal regulations in the campus, including specifying places for protest, would be in place, they added.

On Monday, some members of the Students Federation of India and some Kashmiri students in the University of Hyderabad, also known as Hyderabad Central University, tried to stage a protest against the Centre's decision to abolish Article 370 but they were dispersed by university security personnel, who cited implementation of prohibitory orders issued by the police.