New Delhi: Thousands turned up in Delhi and four other cities across the country holding aloft placards as a part of the #NotInMyName demonstrations calling for an end to the lynching of innocent Muslims by mobs of cow vigilantes.
At Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, close to 5000 people jostled with each other holding posters and placards demanding the government should act against those responsible for such incidents.
Mohammad Alim, a shop owner from Gurgaon, told News18 that "these incidents are nothing but a blot on the secular fabric of our country."
"India is my country and why should we live in fear? These attacks show that the government is complicit in these crimes and they must be held accountable. Common folk have no enemity but it's the leaders who are fuelling tension," said Alim.
The protesters penned poems penned by Mahatma Gandhi and the posters spoke out that the mob lynchings are examples of "false nationalism."
"Tumhare nazron mein gaaye zaroori lagti Hai, aur insan bejaan lagti Hai," said a young girl reading a poem on the stage.
In Bengaluru, historian Ramchandra Guha and actor-director Girish Karnad joined the hundreds in protesting at the Town Hall.
The citizen protests were held in Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram and Bengaluru, following a powerful online campaign sparked by a Facebook post from filmmaker Saba Dewan on the lynching of a Muslim teen in a train in Haryana.
The campaign, which discouraged party banners, sought to “reclaim the Constitution” and “resist the onslaught” on the right to life.
In Mumbai, actors Shabana Azmi and Konkona Sen Sharma, Kali Koechlin were seen at participating at Carter Road in suburban Bandra.
Protesters marched silently, holding posters and placards bearing slogans. "Killing over food. Not in my Name," read a placard.
In Kolkata, the protesters gathered at Dhakuria.
Filmmaker Aparna Sen, who was part of the protests, said, “It is a matter of concern that now we are being told what to eat and what to wear. We all are here to spread the message of peace and harmony.”
Anuradha Kapoor, who runs an NGO called Swayam, said, “We are expressing our voice against atrocities through songs and poetry. Whatever happening now a days in the name of religion is alarming.”
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