Several activists have been upset with Bengaluru police over permissions being denied to multiple solidarity protests in support of Palestine. Bengaluru for Justice and Peace, a coalition of civil society groups, whose application to hold a protest against Israel’s attack on Palestine at Freedom Park on Saturday was turned down citing “law and order issues”, has now written an open letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah demanding “right to protest and peaceful assembly.”
However, Bengaluru City Police Commissioner B. Dayananda said it was the stand of the Karnataka State police not to allow any protests on the Israel-Palestine issue anywhere in the State, and permission for all protests relating to this issue was turned down accordingly.
Sources said that a call on this was taken following an evaluation of multiple inputs, as several Hindutva right wing groups had also sought permission to hold solidarity protest marches in favour of Israel even as many groups had sought permission to hold demonstrations in favour of Palestine.
“A decision has been taken to turn down permission for both protests, to avoid any communal conflagration,” a senior official said.
Other instances
There have been other instances of Bengaluru city police denying permission for Palestine solidarity protests in the recent past.
Two applications by various left parties to hold a solidarity protest at Freedom Park were turned down, citing that since other protests were being held in Freedom Park the same day, there was no space. Police also booked several activists for holding a Palestine solidarity protest at M.G. Road recently. “Police register FIRs against those peacefully protesting saying that protests are allowed only in Freedom Park. But when permission is sought to protest in Freedom Park it is denied,” the open letter said.
The letter further said that following the city police denying permission for Palestine-related protests, the activists met with the Chief Minister and apprised him of the situation, but lamented that the police continue to deny permission.
Activists decry police action
City Police have registered two FIRs for protests one in connection with the M.G. Road protest at Cubbon Park police station and the other at Tilak Nagar police station for a protest outside Bilal Masjid. Tumakuru police also registered a suo motu FIR against left-party activists who held a Palestine solidarity march, under section 295A (punishment for deliberate and malicious acts) of the Indian Penal Code.
Mangaluru Police arrested a 58-year-old man Zakir for posting a video in which he appealed to people to pray for Hamas. Hospet police in Vijayanagara district arrested 20-year-old youth Alam Basha for a pro-Palestine WhatsApp status, which he was reportedly forced to delete. The Kalaburagi police resorted to canning to disperse a group of men staging a protest supporting Palestine on October 20.
Demand for withdrawal of cases
“Such actions of the Karnataka State government is not only an assault on the fundamental rights of citizens to protest, but also display a cruel indifference to the genocide being carried out by the Israeli government, and is an immoral abuse of power by these offices,” the open letter said, demanding immediate withdrawal of all cases against peaceful protestors.
