Controversies do not seem to end with the protests by wrestlers at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. After politicians made a beeline to the protest venue for their political benefits and ‘Modi Teri Kabar Khudegi’ slogans were raised, now any-India ‘Azadi’ slogans were raised in the venue on 4th May 2023. A group of Muslims and other self-styled activists appeared at the protest venue and raised various slogans against PM Modi, RSS, and BJP in the name of supporting the wrestlers who are protesting at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.
According to a report by Khabar India, a group of Muslims and other self-styled activists appeared at the protest site in the afternoon and raised Azadi slogans, and slogans against PM Modi, RSS, and BJP. The protestors alleged that Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh is the culprit and the BJP government is sacking him. The protestors demanded the arrest of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and alleged that the Delhi police are working under the pressure of the central government.
The protestors newly joining the wrestlers today included many students and youths including hijab-clad young Muslim girls. Along with various placards, an apparently scripted list of slogans written on paper was also seen with the protestors. Some of them also used mobile phones to read out the slogans.
The sloganeers also mentioned the so-called Muslim victims of mob lynching including Mohammad Akhalaq and Junaid Khan. Salman Abbasi – one of the Muslims supporting the wrestlers said that there is unrest in the minds of Muslims in India. He said that the whole Muslim community is against the government in this protest and supports the wrestlers. He said that Beti Bachao and Beti Padhao is just a slogan for BJP. “They do not save girls and they do not educate girls. See what they have done in Madhya Pradesh. If a person from another party does anything, they put the entire IT cell after him. We hope for justice from the courts and Allah”, he said. He also added that if any Muslim in the country raises his voice for justice, he is likely to be jailed under this regime.
Another protestor said, “They are asking why are we asking for freedom. We are asking for freedom which means Azadi. Why a wrestler like Vinesh Phogat has to suffer? She is a diamond of the country.”
The wrestlers who have levelled allegations of sexual harassment against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who is also a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Uttar Pradesh, are protesting at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar since 23 April.
The scuffle yesterday is said to have broken after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) politician and an MLA from Malviya Nagar, Somnath Bharti arrived at Jantar Mantar with folding beds for the wrestlers without any permission. The Delhi Police spotted Bharti and said that he did not have permission to see the wrestler, given that in the evening, no outsiders were allowed inside the barricade.
After a few minutes, the wrestlers also got involved and the Police detained Bharati and his supporters who arrived at the spot. The matter further escalated as the wrestlers claimed that the Delhi Police were drunk and they misbehaved with the wrestlers. The police, according to the wrestlers, also caused injuries to Dushyant Phogat and other wrestlers. Now, Azadi slogans are raised at the wrestlers’ protest.
It is notable that similar slogans were raised by protestors in many protests in the past. Anti-CAA protests, Shaheen Bagh protests, farmers’ protests, and various other protests in JNU are known for these Azadi slogans. Now, these sloganeers have also joined the wrestlers’ protests.
