3 arrested for damaging BMC vehicle in Dharavi mosque protest

MUMBAI: The Dharavi police on Sunday arrested three persons in connection with the massive protest staged by locals on Saturday after a BMC team landed up to demolish the illegal section of a mosque in the area. The arrested persons, who are accused of pelting stones that damaged the window panes of a civic vehicle, were produced in court and remanded to police custody for a day, a police officer said.
Tensions rose in Dharavi after officials from the G North administrative ward arrived at 90-Feet Road around 9 am on Saturday to demolish the illegal section of the Mehboob-E-Subhani mosque. A large group of local residents gathered and blocked the civic officials from entering the lane where the mosque is situated. Later, hundreds of people also gathered outside the nearby Dharavi police station and sat on the road in protest against the civic body’s action.
More than 100 policemen were immediately deployed to manage the crowd and prevent any disturbances. The case was registered after the miscreants pelted stones at a BMC vehicle and damaged its front window. The FIR was registered under Sections 132, 189(1), 189(2), 189(4), 190, 191(2), 324(3) and 191(3) of the BNS along with Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984, including Section 7 of the Criminal Amendment Act.
“The police managed the large crowd and prevented any untoward incidents, including the risk of a stampede,” said a police officer of the Dharavi police station. “Around 5,000 people had gathered outside the police station, chanting slogans and pleading with the authorities to halt the demolition. Now the situation is under control.”