Violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act spread to eight more districts of Uttar Pradesh on Friday, a day after a protestor in Lucknow succumbed to injuries from a firearm. Five more people died on Friday, ANI reported. Two of the people who died were in Bijnore, while the others were in Firozabad, Sambal and Meerut.
Since Thursday night, at least 3,000 people have been arrested across the state in connection with the protests against the amended citizenship law, according to India Today. Statewide prohibitory orders banning large gatherings are still in place.
In Bahraich, police had to use batons to push back protestors while internet was blocked in Bulandshahr district from 3 pm, said District Magistrate Ravindra Kumar. A police van was torched in the district. Internet services also remained suspended in about a dozen districts, including Aligarh, Mau, Azamgarh, Lucknow, Kanpur, Bareilly, Shahjahanpur, Ghaziabad, Sambhal and Allahabad, reported PTI.
Protestors pelted stones at the police in Firozabad, Gorakhpur, Bhadohi, and Sambhal districts, when demonstrators attempted to take out marches following Friday afternoon prayers, reported The Times of India. There were also reports of violence in cities such as Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Kanpur, and Jaunpur. The district magistrate of Aligarh, Chandra Bhushan Singh, issued a red alert and stepped up security.
In Lucknow, the epicentre of Thursday’s protests, protests in the old city area turned violent.
You’ve read Scroll.
Now help sustain it
Scroll is funded by readers, not corporate owners. If you believe our work matters, support our newsroom. Become a member today!
We’re not driven by clicks or corporate interests – just honest, independent reporting. Keep us going. Support Scroll today!