india

Updated: Jul 16, 2017 07:21 IST

Facebook post by a filmmaker against the lynching of a Muslim teenager has sparked a powerful online campaign, leading to protest marches being organised in several cities across the country.

Thousands hit the streets in support of the campaign, “Not In My Name”.

Citizen protests were held in Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Bhopal and Bengaluru, simultaneously, on Wednesday. Filmmaker Saba Dewan said it reflected the “anger and grief” of the people. “I never realised the response would be so overwhelming. Despite the debilitating violence, these protests will make us feel we are alive and spark hope,” Dewan had told agencies.

Below are the live updates:

8:30pm: Children as young as two years old were seen during the protests with their parents in New Delhi.



Imtiaz Ahmed Khan came with his 2-year-old daughter Noya at Jantar Mantar. ( HT )

8:20pm: Rain plays spoil sport in New Delhi, forcing the protests to end. Some protesters at Jantar Mantar take shelter while others leave as heavy rain lashes the city.

7:55pm:

Dance performance by an artiste at Jantar Mantar to protest against Ballabgarh lynching #notinmyname @htTweets @htdelhi pic.twitter.com/Vx958BilOF — Abhinav Rajput (@Abhinavrt) June 28, 2017

7:40pm: Patna residents join the campaign through a silent protest at Kargil Chowk near Gandhi Maidan.

Protesters at Kargil Chowk near Gandhi Maidan in Patna. ( Santosh Kumar/HT )

7:35pm: “This cannot go on and on. This is something beyond party politics. Citizens are realising enough is enough,” says AAP leader Ashutosh in New Delhi during the protests.

7:30pm:

Huge crowd at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. ( Bobby Ghosh/HT Photo )

7:29pm: Musician Rabbi Shergill takes the stage at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

Musician Rabbi Shergill. ( HT )

7:28pm:

#NotInMyName: protesters at Jantar Mantar number at least a couple thousands. Not bad for a beginning, and given the short notice pic.twitter.com/HdqIz0C1lY — rajesh mahapatra (@rajeshmahapatra) June 28, 2017

7:25pm: Police officials say around 300 people joined the protests in Bengaluru.

7:23pm: People in Hyderabad leave the site of the protest in a rally after police officials ask them to disperse.

7:22pm: Protestors in Hyderabad hold a silent protest with placards without raising any slogans. Social activist Kalpana Kannabiran says it is atrocious on the part of fringe elements of Hindutva to lynch innocent Muslims and Dalits across the country in the name of nationalism.

7:20pm: Swami Agnivesh in New Delhi says there has been an unprecedented rise in violence against one community since the BJP government came to power.

7:18pm: Demonstrations end in Mumbai as people start to disperse.

7:17pm: People recite poems from the podium set at the protest site at Jantar Mantar.

Protesters at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi. ( HT )

7:15pm: More than 2,000 people have gathered at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

7:12pm: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders Atishi Marlena and Dilip Pandey join protests in New Delhi.

AAP leaders at Jantar Mantar. ( HT )

7:10pm: Have come here as a common man to render my support, says Manish Sisodia.

7:00pm: Deputy chief minister of New Delhi Manish Sisodia joins the protests at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

6:49pm: Over 400 people can be seen at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

6:48pm: Many gather at tank bund on the banks of Hussain Sagar in Hyderabad

Protests in Hyderabad. ( HT )

6:45pm: People in Mumbai have permission to protest only till 7pm.

Protesters stand in the rain at Carter Road in Mumbai. ( HT )

6:34pm: Member of People’s Union for civil liberties Binayak Sen joins the protest in Mumbai.

6:33pm: Actor and film director Girish Karnad takes part in the protest in Bengaluru.

Girish Karnad (C) with Ramachandra Guha (L) in Bengaluru. ( HT )

6:30pm: Activist Swami Agnivesh joins the protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. “Increasing incidents of mob lynching are disheartening,” he says.

6:20pm: “Livelihood is our right, life is our right and coming here is also my right,” says a Class 8 student in Bengaluru.

6:15pm: People gather at Iqbal Maidan in Bhopal to join the campaign ‘Not In My Name’, shout slogans to protest against the lynching.

6:13pm: Actress Shabana Azmi says, “It is not an isolated incident (lynching of a Muslim teenager). Need a stringent law against the perpetrators.”

Bollywood actress Shabana Azmi in Mumbai. ( AP )

6:10pm: Actors Vikrant Massey, Rajat Kapoor and Shabana Azmi take part in the protests in Mumbai.

6:08pm: Historian and writer Ramachandra Guha joins the protests in Bengaluru.

Ramachandra Guha (in pink shirt) at Town Hall in Bengaluru. ( HT )

6:00pm: Police officials stand guard near the site of protests at Carter Road in Mumbai.

Police officials in raincoats at Carter Road, Mumbai. ( HT )

5:58pm: Protest gathers steam in Bengaluru.



A large number of people seen at Town Hall in Bengaluru. ( HT )

5:54pm: Civil rights activist Teesta Setalvad and writer Rana Ayyub join the protests in Mumbai.

5:40pm: People start gathering at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. The protest is expected to begin by 6:00pm.

5:35pm: Actor Konkona Sen Sharma joins the protests in Mumbai.

Konkona Sen Sharma in Mumbai. ( HT )

5:30pm: Bollywood actors Ranvir Shorey and Jim Sarbh with social media activist Arpita Chatterjee reach Carter Road in Mumbai to join the protest.

Bollywood actors Ranvir Shorey (L) and Jim Sarbh (R) with activist Arpita Chatterjee in Mumbai. ( HT )

5:25pm: Bollywood actress Kalki Koechlin joins the protest in Mumbai.

Kalki Koechlin at Carter Road, Mumbai. ( HT )

5:21pm: Mumbai protesters planning to form a human chain.

5:20pm: Youngsters tie black bands on their arms in Lucknow.

Lucknow. ( Subhankar Chakraborty/HT )

5:18pm: Police in Hyderabad ask protesters to disperse, saying they have not taken permission and are causing traffic problems in the area.

5:10pm: Former president of the Bombay Catholic Sabha and activist Gordon D’Souza, who joined the protest in Mumbai, says, “violence in the name of religion is sacrilegious. It is high time all of us regardless of caste and community stand up against it.”

5:06pm: People in Lucknow blame the Modi government for giving “heroic treatment” to the “so-called vigilante groups and gau rashaks”.

Protestors at GPO in Lucknow. ( Subhankar Chakraborty/HT )

5:05pm: Over 100 people have joined the protests in Hyderabad.

5:00pm: People stage demonstrations at Gandhi Pratima in Lucknow, blame the government for keeping mum on the issue.

Protestors at tank bund on the banks of Hussain Sagar in Hyderabad. ( HT )

4:50pm: People gather at Carter Road in Mumbai for the protests even as rains and high tide lash the city.

4:45pm: Stage set for protests at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

Jantar Mantar. ( HT )



4:45pm: Activists in Hyderabad display copies of the Indian Constitution to assert their right to freedom.

4:41pm: Police officials try to stop protestors from holding placards or banners in Hyderabad.

4:40pm: Around 50 activists from various social organisations gather at tank bund on the banks of Hussain Sagar in Hyderabad.

The incident which triggered the protests:

•16-year-old Junaid was allegedly stabbed to death and four others were injured on board a Mathura-bound train when an argument over a seat turned into religious slurs and triggered a mob attack on family members returning home from Eid shopping on June 23.

•The incident took place on Thursday evening between Okhla and Asoti in Haryana, a distance of about 60 km.

•The four injured told HT that the attackers repeatedly called them “anti-nationals” and “beef eaters”, threw their skull caps on the floor, caught their beards and taunted them with terms such as “mulla”.