Food At The Time Of CAA Protests: When Good Samaritans Came Together To Feed Hungry Protesters
Protests against the Citizenship Act have been raging across cities in India. People from all corners of the country irrespective of caste or creed have stepped out to voice their dissent. Good samaritans made sure to keep them warm with a hot cup of tea biscuits and even biryani.
Over the past few days, protests against the Citizenship Act have been raging across cities in India. People from all corners of the country, irrespective of caste or creed have stepped out to voice their dissent.
While people in Delhi braved the cold weather to join protests, good samaritans made sure to keep them warm with a hot cup of tea, biscuits and even biryani.
In the protest that took place on Thursday, December 19, people in Delhi's Mandi house distributed aloo patties, biscuits and bananas to those who might have skipped their morning breakfast to make it to the venue.
The heroes of today¡¯s protest - the man distributing the aloo patties, the young boy and girl distributing free biscuits, the bananas. #delhi #CAAProtest pic.twitter.com/TggELn23lP
¡ª Kabeer Sharma (@ka_beer) December 19, 2019
Another Twitter user shared a video of a man serving 'Free Kadelpuri' to all the protesters gathered in Bengaluru.
Nadeem Pasha giving free kadlepuri at the #bangaloreprotest today. pic.twitter.com/BSNH0v803k
¡ª Pavitra Jayaraman (@Pavitra_J_) December 19, 2019
Here are some people serving food for those gathered at Jantar Mantar
In the peaceful protests that took place in India Gate on December 16, one of the organisations named Khidmat Foundation - meaning 'to serve' - brought vegetarian biriyani, so that people of all preferences could eat. Two other people from the Sikh community were handing out free cups of tea to all those gathered at the venue.
Protest at India Gate ended with volunteers serving tea as langar outside the protest area. :) Heartened by the solidarity I saw on display today. Rage, rage against the dying of light. #CAAProtests pic.twitter.com/7DySUE2K7V
¡ª Asmita (@asmitaghosh18) December 16, 2019
It's not just people involved in the protests who served food, even cops played their part and ensured that no one went hungry.
It stood in complete contrast to the intense situation in various parts of the country, cops in Delhi and Bengaluru offered tea, bananas and rice to the demonstrators detained. In Bengaluru, as many as 120 demonstrators were taken to a wedding hall in Kormangala by the police. Realising it was lunchtime, the police immediately arranged for tomato rice to feed protesters. According to India Today, a hotel nearby was tasked with prepared the lunch for those detained at the hall.
Tea, biscuit, water and Frooti. Delhi Police¡¯s PR machinery is working really hard. #CAAProtest #CAA_NRC #NRC_CAA #Delhi #JantarMantar https://t.co/6PYRSffYBc
¡ª Shylaja Varma (@ShylajaVarma) December 19, 2019
In Delhi, the police decided to take care of the detainees and offered refreshments to those protesting at Surajmal Stadium and Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Bawana area of Northwest Delhi.
The police said, "In order to provide a human touch, tea and lunch were served to protesters at Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Bawana. Sheet, chairs and mats are also provided to all."
Delhi Police even tweeted about the same on their official Twitter handle with pictures and wrote, 'Officers of Delhi Police interacting with the protesters...Offering tea, biscuits, water, etc'.
These aren't small gestures, they show how we as a country are united and absolutely selfless when it comes to caring for each other. We might find ourselves on different sides while doing our duty, but we should strive to put humanity above everything else.
In the protests that took place on December 19, there was heavy police deployment, internet clampdown, shutting of Metro stations and blocking of highways. While in Mumbai and Rajasthan, the protests were largely peaceful, those held in Mangalore, Lucknow and Patna witnessed violence as three deaths - two in Mangalore and one in Lucknow.
