Page 34 - Protest

Sikh bodies hold protest march in Phagwara over desecration, demands arrest

Activists of some Sikh bodies held a protest march here on Saturday demanding the arrest of those behind the desecration of Sikh religious book 'Gutka Sahib' in August. They also demanded that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) be constituted to probe the case. Pages of 'Gutka Sahib' were found scattered under a tree near the old civil hospital building here on August 31. Police had registered a case under relevant sections, including 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against unidentified people in the matter. The protesters took out a march from the Singh Sabha Gurdwara, Sabzi Mandi to the site near the old civil hospital building where the pages were found. Later, they submitted a memorandum to Phagwara Superintendent of Police (SP) Mukhtiar Rai demanding that an SIT be constituted to probe the case. The memorandum was addressed to the director

133 injured in protests as Iraq's Parliament reconvenes after two months

At least 122 security members and 11 protesters were injured in clashes as the Iraqi Parliament reconvened after nearly two months of suspension amid a political deadlock

Ankita Bhandari murder: Last rites held finally, NH 58 blocked in protest

Her body was brought to the NIT Ghat here and consigned to flames amid the presence of a large number of people.

84 arrested in Sri Lanka as protests erupt in Colombo, state media reports

A total of 84 people have been arrested by Sri Lankan police as several protestors gathered in Colombo raising their voice against what they claimed was "suppression", media reports said

Iran restricts internet as protests over Mahsa Amini's death intensify

Iranian authorities on Saturday announced to restrict internet access in the country over intensified protests after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in police custody after her arrest

VHP workers gather outside UK embassy to protest attacks on Indians

Members of Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Saturday assembled outside the UK Embassy in New Delhi to protest against the attacks against Indians in Leicester, Birmingham and Smethwick

Iranian govt scrambles to contain unrest as it spreads to more towns

The large-scale protests against the Iranian government over the custodial death of a 22-year-old Kurdish woman who was arrested by the country's notorious "morality" police for allegedly violating the strict law on headscarves has reportedly spread to about 80 cities and towns. Hundreds of protesters, mostly women, took to the streets following the death of Mahsa Amini - a Kurd native, chanting anti-government slogans that target the core of the Islamic regime and its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The death toll in the violent clashes with security forces has reached as high as 26, Iranian state TV indicated on Friday. The unrest, said to be the worst in recent years, has also spread to about 80 Iranian cities and towns. At least five security personnel have also been killed and several others injured while trying to confront protesters in Mashhad, Quchan, Shiraz, Tabriz, and Karaj, it added. Amini's tragic death has fuelled an outpouring of long-simmering anger over ...

At least 26 dead during protests over Mahsa Amini's death in Iran: Report

Iranian state television suggested that the death toll of protests over the death of a 22-year-old woman in police custody has risen to over two dozen, without providing more information as the unrest continues. An anchor on Iran's state television suggested the death toll from the mass protests could be as high as 26 on Thursday, but did not elaborate or say how he reached that figure. Unfortunately, 26 people and police officers present at the scene of these events lost their lives, the anchor said, adding official statistics would be released later. Clashes between Iranian security forces and protesters have killed at least 11 people since the violence erupted over the weekend, according to a tally Thursday by The Associated Press. The demonstrations in Iran began as an emotional outpouring over the death of Mahsa Amini, a young woman held by the country's morality police for allegedly violating its strictly enforced dress code. The police say she died of a heart attack and was

PFI hartal: Kerala police warns of stern action against law breakers

Kerala police have beefed up security in the state and issued directions to the district police chiefs to ensure law and order after the radical Islamic outfit Popular Front of India (PFI) called for a state-wide hartal on Friday. The dawn-to-dusk hartal was called by the PFI to protest against the raids in the offices and residences of its leaders and their subsequent arrests on Thursday by the NIA and other agencies for allegedly supporting terror activities in the country. A statement issued by the police said stern action will be taken against those who violate the law. "All the policemen in the state will be deployed for the maintenance of law and order, " the statement said. Meanwhile, the state-run KSRTC has informed that it will operate as usual. The transport corproation said special services to hospitals, airports and railway stations will be arranged if necessary and will also seek police protection, if needed. PFI on Thursday had said a hartal will be observed in the

Instagram disrupted across Iran amid protests over woman's death; 6 killed

Iranians saw their access to Instagram, one of the few Western social media platforms still available in the country, disrupted on Wednesday following days of mass protests over the death of a woman who was detained by the morality police. NetBlocks, a London-based group that monitors internet access, reported widespread disruptions. Witnesses inside Iran, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of security concerns, said they were unable to log on using mobile phones or home connections. There was no immediate comment from Iranian authorities on the disruption to Instagram, which would limit the ability of protesters to organize and share information. Iran already blocks Facebook, Telegram, Twitter and YouTube, even though top Iranian officials use public accounts on such platforms. Many Iranians get around the bans using virtual private networks, known as VPNs, and proxies. In a separate development, the website of Iran's Central Bank was briefly taken down on Wednesday as hacker

Pak's ousted PM Imran Khan to launch protest rally against Sharif-led govt

Pakistan's ousted prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday announced to launch a protest movement' against the Shehbaz Sharif-led coalition government from Saturday demanding early elections. Khan also said he would soon give a call for long march' on Islamabad to send the imported government home. I am going to start a movement against the government from Saturday (Sept 24) and you (lawyers) have to stand up for law and be part of this to achieve Haqiqi Azadi' (real freedom), he said while addressing a lawyers' convention outside the Lahore registry of the Supreme Court here.

Iran police fire tear gas at protests over Mahsa Amini's death in custody

Iranian police fired tear gas to disperse a protest in the western, mainly Kurdish city of Sanandaj, where hundreds rallied to decry the death of a young woman while in police custody in Tehran last week, reports said. The case of the 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained last Tuesday after Iran's so-called morality police found fault with her headscarf, or hijab, has set off a public outcry in the country, mainly on social media. Police said she died of a heart attack and have denied any allegations of torture or abuse. The semiofficial Fars news agency reported late Sunday that police also arrested several people from about 500 protesters who had gathered on Sunday at Azadi Square in Sanandaj, the capital of Iran's Kurdistan province. Fars said the protesters smashed car windows and set fire to street garbage cans. The agency's website carried a brief video showing scores of men and women protesting, claiming the police's explanation about Amini's death was not ...

Thousands march in Turkey to demand ban on LGBTQ associations, activities

An anti-LGBTQ group marched Sunday in Istanbul, demanding that LGBTQ associations be shuttered and their activities banned, in the largest demonstration of its kind in Turkey. Several thousand people joined the demonstration dubbed The Big Family Gathering. Kursat Mican, a speaker for the organisers, said they had gathered more than 150,000 signatures to demand a new law from Turkey's parliament that would ban what they called LGBTQ propaganda, which they say pervades Netflix, social media, arts and sports. Hatice Muge, who works as a nanny, came to the gathering from Bursa province. People are here despite the rain for their children, for future generations, she said, urging the Turkish government to take action. They should save the family, they should save the children from this filth." The group held banners that read: Protecting the family is a national security issue. LGBTQ parades have not been allowed in Turkey since 2015. Ahead of Sunday's demonstration, the organisers .

Protest at Chandigarh varsity as videos from girls' hostel leak; 1 arrested

Students of a private university in Punjab's Mohali held a protest on the campus after videos of several women students were posted on social media, police said Sunday. The protest was held on the university campus located at Ludhiana-Chandigarh road past midnight. The woman student who was involved in sharing the videos online has been apprehended. She had made videos of some women students and sent those to a youth in Shimla who allegedly uploaded those on social media, they said. Police said an investigation into the matter was underway. Punjab Minister for School Education Harjot Singh Bains asked the students of the university to stay calm and assured them that the guilty will not be spared. "It is a sensitive matter and concerns the dignity of our sisters and daughters. We all, including the media, should be very cautious. It is also a test of ours as a society," Bains said in a tweet.

Bilkis Bano case: Activists will march 180 kms to protest convicts release

A group of social activists will take out a 'padyatra' (foot march) from Randhikpur in Dahod district of Gujarat to Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad to protest the release of 11 convicts in the Bilkis Bano case. The 11 were released from a jail in Godhra on August 15 after they were granted remission by the Gujarat government. The activists will march under the banner of 'Hindu Muslim Ekta Samiti' and cover the 180-kilometre distance between September 26 and October 4, with social activist Sandeep Pandey and MLA Jignesh Mevani set to participate along with 25 others, organising committee member Kalim Siddique said. The release of the convicts is a matter of shame in a country that is identified the world over for its spirituality and the values and virtues of Mahatma Gandhi, the group said in a release. "It is a shame that Gujarat, which produced a global stalwart like Mahatma Gandhi, is silent today on people who have committed heinous crimes," it added. There was need to speak out

Kolkata streets turn into war zone as violence shrouds BJP's protest march

Roads around the 19th century iconic Howrah Station resembled a battleground on Tuesday with brickbats aimed at police personnel flying thick and fast, and drenched protesters hit by water cannons limping to the safety of nearby alleyways and shops. BJP agitators brought in by special trains for a protest march to the Bengal secretariat turned violent when they found roads leading to the state's seat of power barricaded by riot police. Dilip Biswas, 34, who had boarded one of the special trains to come to the metropolis from Andal, said, I never realised the protest march would turn into such a fierce combat... The police were relentless, while those in the crowd besides me were equally violent. I don't know who started throwing stones at the police, but after two officers went down like nine pins, they started firing water cannons, burst tear gas shells and lathicharged us. The protesters also hurled glass bottles at police personnel, while some of them were seen lifting tree logs

Govt insensitive to pain of common people, alleges Congress ahead of rally

The Congress on Saturday accused the Centre of being "insensitive" to the pain of the common people due to rising prices and said it will continue fighting for their cause on the streets as the principal opposition. Speaking with the media ahead of the 'Mehngai par halla bol' rally of the party at the Ramlila Maidan here on Sunday, General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal hit out at the Modi government for its "wrong policies" and alleged it was busy "buying MLAs" and toppling Opposition governments. "This government is totally insensitive. You can compare the prices, from 2014 to 2022, how the prices of essential commodities have shot up," said Venugopal, flanked by Congress general secretaries Jairam Ramesh and Ajay Maken at the Ramlila Maidan here. The Congress has been raising the issue on the streets, protested with a Black Day in August when several leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, courted arrest, and also pressed for a debate in Parliament on t

Protesters demand reopening of Sterlite Copper plant, submit memorandum

The urgency stemmed from more than 15,000 families losing their livelihood since the plant's closure. These also include the port workers, lorry drivers, contract labour workers and breadwinning women

Students, activists protest Bilkis Bano convicts release at Jantar Mantar

CPI-Marxist-Leninist-backed AISA and several other organisations on Saturday staged a demonstration at Jantar Mantar against the release of 11 convicts by the Gujarat government in the Bilkis Bano case. The activists said that the decision to release the 11 convicts on 'remission' on August 15 was a slap on the constitutional values and secular fabric of the country. The protest was also joined by documentary filmmaker Gauhar Raza who recited Faiz Ahmed Faiz's nazm 'Chand Roz Aur'. "The pattern from Kathua to Unnao to Hathras and Gujarat is the same - rapists being shielded by the government," All India Students' Association (AISA) said in a statement. Kavita Krishnan, National Secretary of All India Progressive Women's Association (AIPWA), said the early release of the convicts was actually a reward for their heinous acts, which was evident in their garlanding. "This was a signal to the voters of Gujarat that the government of Gujarat and BJP-RSS stands with the rapists and ...

TMC's women wing protests release of 11 convicts in Bilkis Bano case

Members of the TMC women's wing hit the streets across West Bengal on Friday, protesting against the release of 11 convicts in the 2002 case of Bilkis Bano's gangrape and murder of her family members. Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya said releasing the convicts has set a dangerous precedent. "We are ashamed. Prime Minister Narendra Modi talks about 'nari shakti' and giving respect to women. Yet, his party members in Gujarat allow the convicts of the heinous crime to be released," she said. Bilkis Bano was 21 years old and five months pregnant when she was gang-raped while fleeing the riots that broke out after the Godhra train burning in 2002. Her three-year-old daughter was among the seven killed. The 11 men convicted in the case walked out of the Godhra sub-jail on August 15 after the Gujarat government allowed their release under its remission policy. They had completed more than 15 years in jail. The Trinamool Mahila Congress has been protesting since Thursday over a host of ..