NEW DELHI: Several rounds of teargas shells and water cannons were used as young students demanding justice for the 23-year-old gang rape victim clashed with police at the Raisina Hill, the seat of power.
Repeated resort to firing of shells and water jets failed to dampen the spirit of several hundreds of young students, both girls and boys, as they tried to breach the police barricades to march towards Rashtrapati Bhavan for the second day protesting against the government and police “inaction”.
Former Army Chief Gen V K Singh lent support to the protesters when he joined them at the India Gate and blamed the “systemic collapse” for the brutal rape of the young girl in a moving bus last Sunday.
Some people were removed by police and detained as the situation threatened to go out of hand. A boy and a girl and a traffic policeman were injured in the melee when protesters threw stones, shoes and missiles in which police vehicles and buses were damaged.
Tear gas shells and water failed to deter the protesters who refused to vacate the area that houses the North and South Blocks including the Prime Minister’s office and turned the area into a virtual battleground.
After a ding-dong battle with the police, hundreds of protesters resorted to a sit-in the area chanting slogans against the government and the police. They demanded stern measures to prevent incidents of rape and other crimes against women.
Window panes of a police van were smashed. One of the girls broke the glass window of a bus with her hands.
The police action came as ‘negotiations’ failed at the Raisina Hill leading to Rashtrapati Bhawan failed and the protesters, comprising largely young women and men, tried to breach the barricades to push towards Rashtrapati Bhawan. -PTI
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