The anger over marking the anniversary of the 200 year old Bhima Koregaon battle in Pune continued today in Mumbai as protestors disrupted local train services and traffic on city roads.
The protesters blocked roads in several areas of Mumbai, forced shops to shut down and also attacked a journalist of a television news channel. The central railway has also suspended suburban services between Kurla and Vashi on its harbour corridor. However, it is running special services between CSMT-Kurla and Vashi-Panvel section.
Angered over the death of a person at the event organised to mark the anniversary in Pune yesterday, several groups of people came out in protest this morning in the eastern suburbs of Chembur, Vikhroli, Mankhurd and Govandi, an official said.
A news channel journalist was attacked by a group of protesters in the Amar Mahal area of Chembur. He escaped unhurt, eyewitnesses said.
Hundreds of protesters gathered in Priyadarshini, Kurla, Sidharth Colony and Amar Mahal areas on the Eastern Express Highway. They took out processions and raised slogans against the government and the administration.
The protesters stopped local train services at the Mankhurd, Govandi and Chembur railway stations of the Harbour Line. Central Railway's chief public relations officer Sunil Udasi said the agitators came out on tracks and stopped the suburban services, even though the railways has nothing to do with the incident.
The Mumbai police issued a statement appealing people not to believe in rumours and to verify facts with the police before posting anything on social media. The police said vehicular movement on the Eastern Express Highway was affected due to the protests in the morning, but later it was normal.
Don't believe in rumours. Traffic on Eastern expressway was affected due to protests. It's moving now. Traffic at Chembur Naka is still affected. There is nothing to panic. Verify facts with police officers and men before posting anything on social media.
Also Read: One Dead in Bhima Koregaon Protest, Maharashtra CM Assures Judicial Inquiry
Dalit leaders commemorated the anniversary of the Bhima-Koregaon battle where forces of the East India Company had defeated Peshwa's army. It is believed that soldiers from the Mahar community – then considered untouchable – were part of the East India Company's forces. Some right-wing groups in Pune had expressed opposition to celebration of the British victory.
Meanwhile, in suburban Mulund, shop owners complied with the request of protesters to shut their establishments, a police official said. In the Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar, some angry protesters pelted a bus with stones, breaking its window panes, according to sources.
Heavy security has been deployed in the eastern suburbs to check any untoward incidents, a senior police official said.
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