New Delhi
Police detained more than 100 protesters in key Indian cities on Thursday as they defied a ban on protests that authorities hope to stop widespread demonstrations against a new citizenship law that opponents say threatens the secular nature of Indian democracy.
Dozens of demonstrations took place around the country as opposition grows to a new citizenship law that excludes Muslims. The law has sparked anger at what many see as the government’s push to bring India closer to a Hindu state. Historian Ramchandra Guha, a biographer of India’s independence leader Mohandas Gandhi, was among those detained in Bangalore, the capital of southern Karnataka state.
When reached by the phone, Guha said he was in a bus with other detainees and did not know where the police were taking them. In New Delhi, Yogendra Yadav, the chief of the Swaraj India party, was among those detained as protesters said they would go ahead with a demonstration at New Delhi.—AP
