- 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.
Messages to Ballabhgarh
Protesters from Delhi sent messages of apology to Junaid's father, Jalaluddin, in Ballabhgarh.
“We are sorry that we could not keep your son safe. We will stop the hate. We will live together. Maybe we are less in number but we want to live together and we will together,” a protester said. “We are together in your grief,” another added.
