Seven people, including a police constable, died in the violence that erupted over opposition to the Citizenship Amendment Act in the Jaffrabad, Maujpur and Bhajanpura areas of North East Delhi on Monday. The violence took a communal colour and spread to other parts.
Pictures from the site showed supporters of the citizenship law jumping police barricades, pelting stones, throwing petrol bombs, attacking a Muslim man and damaging tents set up the anti-Citizenship Act demonstrators. Police used tear gas and smoke grenades but struggled to disperse the crowds. Vehicles were set on fire, metal barricades torn down and thick smoke billowed as supporters of the law clashed with opponents.
However, the front pages of all the newspapers on Tuesday gave more attention to United States President Donald Trump’s first visit to India and the “Namaste Trump” event held in Ahmedabad. Only two newspapers – The Telegraph and Dainik Jagran carried the Reuters photograph of people beating a Muslim man in their front pages.
Also read: CAA supporters attack Muslims at Delhi protest, hurl stones and petrol bombs
The Telegraph focused on the violence in the national Capital and ran the headline “The Real Beast”. It highlighted that the violence that erupted in the presence of policemen, who seemingly did not respond to the situation on Monday and remained “spectators”.
The Indian Express chose to highlight Trump’s effusive praise for India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The newspaper carried a photo of violence in Bhajanpura, where a security personnel is standing and used the headline “Head constable is among 5 killed, 78 injured as violence hits north east Delhi”.
The newspaper also pointed that North East Delhi had been on edge since Sunday when a rally by Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kapil Mishra to counter anti-CAA protests had been followed by waves of stone-pelting.
Similarly, Hindustan Times, also gave focus to Trump’s visit to Ahmedabad. The newspaper’s Delhi violence coverage carried a photo of protestors throwing stones during clashes at Jaffrabad and the headline said: “Lawlessness, disorder as protesters run riot”.
The Hindu lead with the clashes in Delhi and said supporters of Citizenship Act set four shops ablaze and pelted stones at other shops after identifying them as belonging to members of the minority community.
The Times of India’s flap headline said “clashes and arson scorch N-E Delhi” and the front page carried a photograph of Modi hugging Trump after receiving him at the airport.
Hindi dailies Dainik Bhaskar and Dainik Jagran carried the deaths of five people in their headline. Dainik Jagran, however, carried pictures featuring riotous men in kurtas, beards and skull caps.
Tamil daily Dinakaran also focussed on the Trump event while giving space to the Delhi violence below the fold. The headline said: “Massive clashes in Delhi, 4 including cop dead”. The newspaper used an image of a protestor with a gun in his hands and pointing it towards the photographer.
The newspaper also mentioned Kapil Mishra’s three-day ultimatum tweet to stop an anti-CAA protest that began in Jaffrabad on Saturday night and blamed it for the clashes.
Another Tamil newspaper Dinathanthi did not even mention the Delhi violence on its front page and only displayed the Trumps in Agra and spoke about the “enthusiastic” welcome he received.
In Gujarat, leading daily Gujarat Samachar devoted its first six pages, as well as pages 14 and 16 entirely to coverage of US President Donald Trump’s visit to Ahmedabad. The violence in Delhi was covered only on page 15, after the business and sports coverage.
The headline had a clear bias, claiming, “CAA opposers put up a violent show in Delhi: 3 killed, including a constable”. A subheadline also claimed that the violence had been carried out specifically during Trump’s visit to India. The report reiterated this, blaming only CAA opposers for the violence and making multiple references to what Trump was doing in Gujarat while specific acts of violence took place in Delhi.
Sandesh, another Gujarati daily, covered Trump’s visit on the first two pages and the Delhi violence on Page 3, where the headline stated: “Violence between CAA opposers and supporters in Delhi: 3 dead”.
In various subheads and small reports across the page, the paper highlighted the areas in Delhi where stone-pelting, firing and arson took place, and the places where Section 144 has now been imposed. There were also reports about the death of a head constable and injuries to 37 police personnel.
The Delhi violence was the lead front page report in Marathi newspaper Loksatta, with the headline and subhead reporting four deaths due to stone-pelting, arson and rioting over CAA. The report focused on the deaths, injuries, closure of metro stations and appeals for peace by politicians.
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