#NotInMyName: Thousands Protest Against ‘Murderous Nationalism’
Catch all the live updates from #NotinMyName protests at The Quint.
- Thousands have gathered across the country to protest against mob lynchings
- The #NotinMyName protests are underway in major cities including Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru
- The protests were triggered after a 16-year-old Muslim boy, Hafiz Junaid, was lynched in the Delhi-Mathura train on Thursday
Hundreds of people from Delhi joined the protest, called "Not In My Name", held six days after the 17-year-old Junaid was killed by a mob on board a Mathura-bound train.
Simultaneous protests were held in several other cities, and are also slated to be held elsewhere in the world, the organisers said.
Among the protesters in Delhi were ordinary citizens, as well as leaders from the Congress, JD(U), AAP and the CPI.
Students and artistes voiced their resistance against what the organisers called a "climate of fear" in the country through poetry, plays, songs and posters which carried messages such as "Not In My Name, Not In Anyone's name" and "Muslim Lives matter, All lives matter".
In Mumbai, activists, a few film personalities and youth staged a protest here, opposing 'community-targeted' mob lynchings.
Actors Shabana Azmi, Konkona Sen Sharma, Rajat Kapoor, Ranvir Shorey, Kalki Koechlin and social media activist Arpita Chatterjee were among those who participated in the protest held at Carter Road in suburban Bandra this evening.
Braving rains, protesters marched silently, holding posters and placards bearing slogans. "Killing over food. Not in my Name," read a placard.
London Joins #NotInMyName Protest
Rabbi Shergill Performs in #NotInMyName Protest at Jantar Mantar
Messages to Ballabhgarh
Protesters from Delhi sent messages of apology to Junaid's father, Jalaluddin, in Ballabhgarh.
Live from Jantar Mantar
Twitteratti Supports #NotInMyName
The Govt is Playing Segregationist Politics: Randeep Surjewala
Congress Spokesperson Randeep Surjewala also attended the protesters. Speaking to The Quint he laid blame on the BJP for ruling the country by dividing it.
He said that the protesters cannot be termed as liberals, rather they are alert India.
Kavita Krishnan Talks to The Quint
Five Arrests Made Over Junaid's Lynching
A total of five people were arrested over the lynching of the Muslim teenager in a Mathura-bound train. However, the accused who stabbed Junaid is believed to be still at large.
"Hum Sab Ek Hai"
A group of protesters chanted “hum sab ek hai” in unison in Carter Road. One protester said the lynchings were state sponsored terrorism. Condemning PM Modi’s silence, he said:
In Delhi, where the protest was largely silent but for musical protests, a protester said:
Live from Jantar Mantar
"We Need to Make Our Voices Heard"
Celebrities like Jim Sarbh, Nandita Das, Ranvir Shorey and Konkona Sen were seen to be protesting along with locals in Mumbai despite the rains.
Speaking to The Quint Neerja actor Jim Sarbh said “intolerance or prejudice leads to public murder and we need to speak out”.
Ranvir Shorey also spoke along similar lines. Speaking to CNN News 18, he said:
In Jantar Mantar’s protest, Delhi-based lawyer Shehzad Poonawala told said the reason behind the lynchings is intolerance.
Protesters in both cities arranged for a peaceful mourning armed with music musical performances.
A Symbolic Protest
A protester at Jantar Mantar carried the Constitution of India in handcuffs to protest against the lack of freedom in the country.
The Quint Goes Live from Carter Road in Mumbai
Protesters Keep Pouring in as Protest Time Runs Out
An impressive number of people gathered outside Hussein Lake in Hyderabad. Despite police urging the protesters to leave the area many more came pouring in numbers. They demanded to be allowed to protest and mourn in silence for a longer period than the designated time.
"We Have Junaid's Blood in Our Hands"
Delhi’s Jantar Mantar too is gearing up for a good turnout. A protester said that the government’s silence about the lynching incidents shows its complicity. Blaming PM Modi, the protester said:
An organizer said the massive response online took them by surpris.
Mumbai Braves the Rains to Protest
Around 30 people have gathered at Mumbai’s Carter Road, braving the rain to protest against mob lynching. Speaking to CNN News 18, a protester said:
#NotinMyName Gets International Support
Twelve cities are due to hold a mass protest against the lynching of a Muslim teenager, Hafiz Junaid, who was stabbed to death on 22 June on a Mathura-bound train which he had taken with his two brothers after shopping for Eid at Delhi's Sadr Bazar.
The altercation, which had allegedly begun over seats, reported turned to racist slurs with the rest of the passengers calling Junaid and his relatives "Pakistanis", "anti-nationals" and "beef eaters".
After the incident, a Gurgaon-based filmmaker Saba Dewan campaigned for the protest #NotInMyName, which garnered a great amount of response online.
In a post on Facebook she wrote:
In another Facebook post, Saba wrote that the protestors believe in the Constitution of India and are against the systematic violence being unleashed against minorities.
The protest in Delhi will be held at the Jantar Mantar at around 6 pm. Other than Delhi these are the cities that will simultaneously hold the protest.
- Madhusudhan Mancha in Kolkata
- Tank Bund in Hyderabad
- Carter Road in Mumbai
- Bangalore Town Hall in Bengaluru
- Marina Beach in Chennai
- The Secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram
- Dr Babasahed Ambedkar Statue near Pune Station in Pune
- Sector 17 in Chandigargh
- Gandhi Park in Lucknow
- Kargil Chowk in Patna
The protest will be also held internationally at the SOAS University of London, 356 Bloor Street East in Toronto, Harvard Square in Boston and at Karachi Press Club in Karachi.
A poster designed by graphic artist Orijit Sen showing a pair of chappals stained with blood has come to be the symbol of the protest.
The Lynching of a Muslim Teenager
16-year-old Junaid is the latest victim of the lynchings over allegations of beef eating and cattle trading.
In the FIR registered by the police, based on Hashib’s account, a copy of which was accessed by The Quint, the word “beef” is conspicuously absent. A more politically correct phrase, “racial slurs”, is used instead.
More than two months since the lynching of Pehlu Khan by cow vigilantes in Alwar, Rajasthan, over allegations of illegal cattle trading, his son Irshad who was with his father during the incident says that he would never be able to get back to the cattle rearing business.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)