UP poet Imran Pratapgarhi slapped with Rs 1.04 crore fine for anti-CAA protests in Moradabad

Uttar Pradesh poet Imran Pratapgarhi has been slapped with Rs 1.04 crore fine for participating in anti Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protest in Moradabad and for allegedly instigating the protestors at the city’s Eidgah premises.

Pratapgarhi was also asked by the additional city magistrate to appear before him last Wednesday but he defied the order.

“Government is trying to find new ways to scare the agitators. But we cannot afford to be afraid of such tactics as the fight is now for (our) existence,” said Pratapgarhi.

The Congress had fielded Imran from Moradabad constituency in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Justifying the notice, Moradabad District Magistrate Rakesh Singh said action was being taken against all those who were defying the prohibitory orders imposed under Section 144 of CrPC.

“No permission has been sought from the administration for the demonstration, so it is illegal,” Singh said.

He added that the fine had been calculated on the basis of the daily cost of the deployment of police and paramilitary forces at the Eidgah protest site.

The notice to Imran says that apart from one company of Rapid Action Force (RAF), one and a half company of Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) has been deployed at the protest site, it puts the daily expenditure on the security arrangement at approximately Rs 13.42 lakh.

A protestor, who did not wished to be named, however, claimed that the Eidgah was a private place and the prohibitory order could not possibly apply to it.

A large number of women are among the anti-CAA protestors sitting at the Eidgah since January 29.

On January 31, the administration had lodged an FIR in Ghalshaheed police station against 20 known and 600 unidentified people-including 200 women-- for shouting objectionable slogans.