Clashes near anti-CAA protest in Northeast Delhi's Jaffrabad, police lob tear gas

New Delhi, Feb 23: Clashes broke out between two groups of people near Jaffrabad in northeast Delhi on Sunday evening where a large number of people had gathered to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

Delhi Police fired tear gas shells as members of the two groups pelted stones at each other in Maujpur and also lathi-charged protesters.

Television footage from the spot showed protesters throwing stones at each other across a road, standing close to police barricades.

Tension prevailed in Jaffrabad area and a large number of security personnel deployed as hundreds of people, mostly women, who had been protesting gainst the CAA, blocked a road near the metro station since the Saturday evening, demanding a rollback of the contentious act.

Chandra Shekhar Aazad-led Bhim Army had also given call for 'Bharat bandh' and demonstrations against the CAA. Similar protests, which mirrored the Shaheen Bagh sit-in where demonstrators have blocked a road since December, started in Khureji Khaas in Karawal Nagar and Chandbagh in northeast Delhi, and Hauz Rani in South Delhi on Sunday, prompting the police to step up security.

For security reasons, the entry and exit gates of Jaffrabad and Maujpur-Babarpur were closed. The 400-metre-stretch between Maujpur traffic signal, where a Shani temple is located, to Babarpur station, was strewn with bricks and stones after the clashed.

The two groups blamed each other for starting the violence .

Delhi Police personnel later stopped the pro-CAA protestors when they tried to march towards Kardampuri where another anti-CAA protest was on. The security personnel formed a human-chain to separate the groups and defuse tension.

"We are trying to identify the people behind the incident," Joint Commissioner of Police (Eastern Range) Alok Kumar told reporters.

The situation is under control now, a senior police official said. "We are continuously speaking to local leaders so that peace prevails in the area and are also requesting protesters to clear the main road," he said.

He said that police personnel have been deployed at Maujpur area to prevent any untoward incident.