Violence in Delhi's Turkman Gate during anti-encroachment drive leaves 5 cops injured

New Delhi, Jan 7 (PTI) An anti-encroachment drive near the Faiz-e-Elahi mosque in Delhi's Ramlila Maidan area on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday triggered violence as many people pelted stones at police personnel, injuring five of them, including the area's station house officer.

Police used force and lobbed teargas shells to quell the protest. Four people were arrested and a juvenile was apprehended. Police also said 10 to 15 people have been detained.

Trouble brewed when a social media post claimed the mosque, opposite the Turkman Gate, was being demolished during the anti-encroachment drive, and people started gathering there, police sources said.

They claimed that 150 to 200 people were involved in the pelting of stones and glass bottles at the police and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) workers.

A senior police officer said Samajwadi Party MP Mohibbullah Nadvi was also present there. "In a preliminary investigation, it has come to light that he was present there, but had left by the time the demolition began. This is being investigated," Joint Commissioner of Police (Central Range) Madhur Verma said.

The MP from Uttar Pradesh's Rampur Lok Sabha Constituency, who is also the Imam of Parliament Street mosque, could not be contacted over the phone when PTI tried to reach out to him, seeking his comment.

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) was carrying out a demolition drive on a land adjoining the mosque and a nearby graveyard at the Turkman Gate area, on the Delhi High Court's direction.

Some commercial establishments, including a diagnostic centre and banquet hall, were demolished during the drive, MCD Deputy Commissioner Vivek Kumar said while making it clear that the mosque was not damaged.

According to police, 150 to 200 people had gathered at the site when the demolition drive was underway. While many dispersed after being persuaded, some created a ruckus and resorted to stone-pelting, resulting in injuries to five police personnel.

The Delhi Police, in a statement, said teargas was used to disperse the crowd, after which the situation was brought under control. It is being probed whether the violence was spontaneous or a pre-planned attempt to disrupt the demolition drive, it said.

Additional Commissioner of Police (Central) Nidhin Valsan said the MCD, which owns the land, scheduled the demolition for the intervening night of January 6 and 7. They had informed the police in advance about the proposed drive and sought deployment of force for maintaining law and order.

More than 50 MCD officials, accompanied by hundreds of police personnel, deployed 32 JCBs and four Poclain machines to carry out the demolition drive.

Police said that they have come across some social media videos instigating people to gather at the demolition site. "Our teams are identifying them to initiate legal action," said a police officer.

A police source said, "One of the videos was allegedly recorded by a person named Khalid Malik, who urged people to step out of their homes in large numbers. Rumours were circulated that bulldozers had been deployed to demolish a mosque, which fuelled tension in the area." In one of the videos, purportedly of the incident, a mob could be seen charging towards police personnel, hurling stones and climbing over barricades erected at the spot.

Police have also recovered masks that some of the protesters wore to hide their identities. Footage from body cameras worn by the police personnel and drone cameras is also being analysed to identify the culprits, they said.

While Mohd Arib (25), Mohd Kaif (23), Mohd Kashif (25) and Mohd Hamid (30) were arrested, a 17-year-old boy was nabbed. CCTV footage and videos circulating on social media are being analysed to identify the others involved in the violence, the police said.

A police officer said, "We will deploy drones to keep a strict vigil. Police personnel, along with paramilitary forces, will continue to be deployed there to maintain law and order." The Additional CP Valsan said a banquet hall and a dispensary near the mosque were to be demolished under the anti-encroachment drive.

Immediately after receiving information from the MCD about the drive, police contacted the locals and informed them that the demolition was a legal action. Police took locals into confidence and received considerable cooperation from them, he added.

The FIR has been registered under BNS sections 221 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 132 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 121 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 191 (rioting), 223 (A) (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and 3(5) (joint liability) and under the provisions of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984.

MCD Deputy Commissioner Kumar Kumar said around 36,000 square feet of encroached area was cleared during the drive. A diagnostic centre, a banquet hall and two boundary walls were demolished during the drive that went on through the night, Kumar said.

He also clarified that the mosque was not damaged in any way.

Joint Commissioner of Police (Central Range) Madhur Verma, in a statement, said, "The entire area was meticulously divided into nine zones, each placed under the supervision of an officer of the rank of additional deputy commissioner of police. Adequate deployment of police force was made at all sensitive points." Prior to the demolition drive, several coordination meetings were held with members of the Aman Committee and other local stakeholders to maintain peace and prevent any untoward incident, the police officer said.

"During the demolition, a few miscreants attempted to cause a disturbance by indulging in stone pelting. The situation was promptly brought under control through measured and minimal use of force, ensuring that normalcy was restored without escalation," he added.

"The situation is totally under control now. Heavy deployment has been made," Joint CP Verma said.

Delhi Home Minister Ashish Sood termed the incident "unfortunate" and warned that violence would not be tolerated. "Obstructing or disrupting work being carried out within the framework of law is completely unacceptable," he said.

"I want to clearly state that the Faiz-e-Elahi mosque is completely safe. The action is limited only to those illegal commercial establishments that fall within the scope of the court's orders.

"There is no arbitrariness or mala fide intent on the part of the government in this matter," Sood stated and appealed to people not to fall prey to any provocation.

For several residents, the sight of bulldozers and police presence stirred five-decades-old memories, when the Turkman Gate area had become a symbol of the Emergency's demolitions and unrest.

Shahid Gagori, a local who said his family has lived in the area for the past 67 years, recalled how his father was jailed during the Emergency for protesting against the demolition of homes at Turkman Gate.

He said the structures demolished this time stood on land that once had a graveyard.

"The graveyard had been closed even before the Emergency, as it had reached its capacity. During the Emergency, the land was cleared and turned into an open field," he said, adding that the banquet hall and diagnostic centre that later came up there were seen by locals as community spaces.

"We gathered there during Roza and celebrated several occasions. The diagnostic centre was charitable and provided treatment at lower costs," he said.

Raghubir Seth, 80, who lived near Turkman Gate during the 1970s and early 1980s, said that while the mosque has existed for decades, the surrounding constructions were relatively new. PTI BM VBH SHB BUN NSD