Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Azad Taken Into Police Custody From Delhi’s Jama Masjid

Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad was taken into police custody from outside the Jama Masjid in the early hours on Saturday morning. He was inside the mosque in protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. “We have to make sacrifice so that the legislation is taken back. We do not support violence. We were sitting inside the mosque since Friday morning and our people were not involved in violence,” he said.

Azad on Friday was "caught" by police but escaped during a protest march from Jama Masjid to Jantar Mantar. According to the Bhim Army, the police tried to escort Azad away at Jama Masjid but he managed to get away. However, he was "caught" later near Daryaganj but escaped from there too, it said.

The protest march led by Bhim Army against the citizenship law, despite the police denying permission to it, came a day after thousands of students, activists and opposition leaders hit the streets in the national capital defying security clampdown and prohibitory orders.

Several workers of the political outfit mingled with the crowd on the steps of the Jama Masjid. They assembled near gate number one of Jama Masjid as drones also kept a vigil on the large gathering which raised slogan 'Inquilab Zindabad' with some singing 'Saare Jahan Se Accha'. Some protesters were also carrying posters of Baba Saheb Ambedkar, Kanshi Ram and Bhagat Singh.

Chandrashekar has been voicing his opinion against the contentious law. Soon after Jamia crackdown, Chandrashekar had slammed the Modi government stating that the Indian Constitution gives equal rights to all the communities to live in the country. He had said, “I do not need to take lessons on it from Sangh Parivar, it is in my blood.”