UP Police Forces Public To Take Off Black Clothes Except Burqas At CM Yogi Adityanath's Rally

Police went into overdrive mode to ensure that nothing black is seen in the chief minister's rally, except for the burqas. In order to prevent any protest (with black flags), police went berserk in forcing public to take off anything black they were wearing. A policeman was even seen snatching a black jacket from an old man in bitter cold.

BCCL

Speaking to TOI, a policeman said on condition of anonymity, "Last time, during the CM's visit, a group had reached near the stage from where he was addressing the rally, and raised slogans while waving black flags. Later, a mild clash also occurred between two groups. We wanted to avoid all that." Meanwhile, a small group of Muslim women were nevertheless allowed in the rally. They were all black from top to bottom.

From caps to shawls to jackets, anything that was black was being collected at the entrance of the venue itself.

Reuters/Representational Image

Manoj Pradhan, a local farmer who attended the rally, said, "This is not good that police is taking away warm jackets just because they are black. Protestors generally carry flags. No one protests with clothes that he wears."

Interestingly, a number of Muslim women wearing burqas were seen sitting at the venue. Taking a swipe at the move, West UP general secretary of RLD, Anuddin Shah said, "Leaders of this party cannot stand criticism and that is why they prevent agitators from exposing them."