Dehradun: With the ostensible objective of carrying out facelift of Parade Ground under Smart City scheme, protesters at the city’s lone ‘dharna sthal’ or protest site there were forcibly shifted by policemen on Wednesday evening.
The cops, accompanied by other local officials, asked the protesters to remove their tent, take their belongings, and move from the site. In the process, they faced resistance from the protesters there after which some protesters were held.
“We have arrested 10 protesters under Section 151 of the Indian Penal Code. They were causing disturbance and were not letting us do our job. A protester, who complained of health issues when we reached there, was admitted to Doon Hospital,” said Shweta Choubey, SP City. The protester, who was admitted to the hospital, had been agitating for a year with the demand to make Gairsain the state capital.
The action by police comes weeks after the administration had announced that the dharna sthal will be shifted from Parade Ground to Adhoiwala, Ekta Vihar. A notice (dated March 9) was put up by the administration which said that the designated site for protest is now shifted to Adhoiwala and all such protests shall take place in Adhoiwala from March 11 onwards.
However, the decision was vehemently opposed by protesters who claim that the administration only wants to weaken the impact of protests through the move.
“The current dharna sthal in the Parade Ground is situated right in the heart of the city. This is why protests get media coverage. The new location which is on the outskirts, won’t have that impact,” said Ramesh Singh, a protester.
“Adhoiwala protest ground is in a very bad shape. There is a bad stench there and the place has waterlogging issues as well. How can the administration expect us to protest there?” asked another protester.
Meanwhile, officials remained dogged in their pursuit of clearing the area and by late evening on Wednesday, JCB machines had already been deployed and the ground was being dug up for construction.
