Poet Munawwar Rana's daughters, 100 other women booked for anti-CAA protest in Uttar Pradesh's Lucknow

Three FIRs were registered by Lucknow Police on Tuesday (January 21) against the women protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) at city's iconic clock tower (Ghanta Ghar).

Two daughters of well-known poet Munawwar Rana - Sumaiya Rana and Fauzia Rana - and over 100 unidentified women were booked by Lucknow police for violating Section 144, instigating people and using assault or criminal force to deter public servant. The Lucknow Police filed the FIRs just hours before the arrival of Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Lucknow to address a rally in support of the CAA on Tuesday.

The protest at clock tower started on Friday (January 17) and is still continuing with the number of women increasing with each passing day despite the freezing winter in the city. It is learnt that child rights commission is also keeping a close eye on the protest amid reports of the participation of children in the protest.

“There were several reports of children being present in the protest and that women were bringing along their kids to the protest. Many reports also suggested that children were made to chant slogans against CAA and NRC, which is a violation of Juvenile Justice Act,” member of the child rights commission, Shuchita Chaturvedi, said.

On Saturday evening (January 18), Lucknow police had confiscated food items and blankets from the protesting women at clock tower but the women refused to leave from the place and continued with their round-the-clock without blankets and mattresses. The women can be seen protesting against the CAA holding the tricolour flags in their hands.  Condemning the police action, the women protesters, most of them elderly, had said that police behaved like 'thieves'. 

For its part, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (West Zone) Vikas Tripathi had justified the police's action saying the cops did not take away the belongings from the protesters and claimed that they only stopped them from setting up tents at the spot.