Shaheen Bagh-like Protest Breaks Out In Mumbai

Mumbai: A group of women, consisting predominantly members from the Muslim community, in a central Mumbai area decided to stage an indefinite sitting on Monday, according to media reports. They decided to lay siege to the area till their demands are met.

Demonstrators in the Central Mumbai area told a television channel that the Maharashtra assembly would also have to pass a similar resolution on the lines of other states such as Kerala, Punjab and Rajasthan.

The city police or the Maharashtra government have not as yet reacted to this protest which, as of Monday morning, is relatively small, compared to the Shaheen Bagh protest in the national capital or the Ghanta Ghar demonstration in Lucknow of UP.

The Shaheen Bagh protest in Delhi has entered its 44th day with a large group of demonstrators laying siege to the main highway in the area. Many Congress leaders have been seen addressing the group of demonstrators in this protest site in Delhi.

The Shaheen Bagh protest has also become the epicentre of a major controversy with Sharjeel Imam believed to be the mastermind behind the protest being booked for seditious comments and inciting communal hatred with provocative remarks. The Ph.D scholar from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in a video which has gone viral, had called for Assam to be cut off from mainland India.

While the central Mumbai protest has begun only on Monday morning, it remains to be seen how it plays out in the days to come and how it is viewed by the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra.