New Delhi, Apr 16 (TOI): Protests against the brutal gangrape-cum-murder of an eight-year-old girl in J&K’s Kathua and the rape of a 16-year-old by a BJP legislator in UP’s Unnao erupted across the country on Sunday. Scores of people hit the streets, condemning the government’s response in both the cases and demanding justice for the hapless girls and their families.
In Mumbai, a large number of people turned up at Carter Road in Bandra to protest against both the cases. Protesters carried placards and shouted slogans seeking justice for the rape victims and harsh punishment for accused persons.
“The crowd that gathered here today is scared and worried. People are disappointed with corruption within the police and degrading law and order situation,” said Abha Singh, lawyer and activist.
In Gujarat, the horrors of Kathua and Unnao shook people’s conscience as hundreds thronged the streets on Sunday. Residents of Dhabgarvad locality in Ahmedabad held a protest march at which children displayed placards, expressing outrage over the Kathua incident. A group of young girls sought justice for the Unnao rape survivor as well.
Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti, which is led by Hardik Patel, has joined the protests. Its members held a candlelight march in Nikol area of Ahmedabad. Similar protests were also held in Vadodara, Surat and Junagadh.
Similarly, in the national Capital, hundreds of people gathered at Jantar Mantar on Sunday, under the banner “Not In My Name”.
The voices echoed through Parliament Street as one among the many placards said, “Beti ko pehle bachao, phir beti padhao”.
In Chandigarh too, city-based volunteer groups, Bekhauf Azaadi and Not In My Name, along with a group of over 12 senior lawyers, organised a protest.
In Unnao’s home state UP, women gathered at the Mahatma Gandhi statue near Chowki Chauraha in Bareilly, carrying placards. They demanded capital punishment for those guilty.
In Pilibhit, hundreds of women staged protests on Sunday on all major city roads. The agitating women said the way BJP legislator Kuldeep Sengar and his men were being extended political patronage was highly condemnable.
Similar protests were witnessed in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam as well.