The Bhim Army chief, Chandrashekhar Azad was arrested on Sunday by Hyderabad police while he was on way to address a public meeting at Crystal Garden, Mehdipatnam against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
Azad had arrived in the city on Sunday, 26 January 2020 and was supposed to attend anti-CAA protest meetings in Hyderabad.
Azad is in Hyderabad to attend a public meeting organized by the All India Dalit Muslim Adivasi Progressive Front (AIDMAPF) at Crystal Garden in Mehdipatnam.
The Bhim Army chief was initially taken to Habeebnagar police station but as his supporters began to reach there to lodge protest, he was shifted to Bolaram police station on the city outskirts. Others were taken to Goshamahal police station.
Earlier, the police began detaining activists of AIDMPAF and other Azad supporters at the venue. Many others who had come to attend the meet were asked to disperse.
Wahdat-e-Islami leader Moulana Naseeruddin, who had also reached the meeting venue, condemned the police action and accused police of “muzzling the voice of democracy” and committing “excesses” on those trying to protest peacefully against the CAA, National Register of Citizens and National Population Register.
On January 13, a public meeting by former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Students Union president Kanhaiya Kumar was to be scheduled at the same venue which was also cancelled after police denied permission.