On Wednesday, a burqa-clad woman at the ongoing anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests in Delhi's Shaheen Bagh was taken away by the police. Reportedly she had aroused suspicion by asking "too many questions".
According to an NDTV article, some protesters also frisked the woman and found a camera. This led to an uproar, and eventually, she was taken away by the police.
"Questioning of political analyst Gunja Kapoor is underway. She wore a 'burqa' and went to the protest site at Shaheen Bagh," the Delhi Police was quoted as saying by ANI.
The woman, identified as Gunja Kapoor, is a YouTuber. According to her Twitter bio, she is the curator of a channel called 'Right Narrative'. On YouTube, the channel describes itself as being "an online initiative that aims to communicate facts & policy interventions backed by data & credible readings".
Gunja incidentally, is followed on Twitter by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga, amongst others.
According to the NDTV report, Gunja responded to questions from reporters by stating that this was not the media's "hot moment".
Videos of the incident show Kapoor being extricated from the crowd by the police.
Since its beginning on December 15, the Shaheen Bagh protest has found itself repeatedly in the news. In the run-up to the Delhi Assembly elections, it has also become a topic for political debate.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath recently alleged that those who supported terrorists in Kashmir were staging protest in Shaheen Bagh and raising slogans of 'azadi'. Speaking at a campaign rally, he had accused the AAP of siding with the protesters and said that the party "supplies biryani" to protesters in Shaheen Bagh. His comments were criticised by the the ruling party.
But even as the debate continued, a man made his way to Shaheen Bagh and fired shots in the air on February 1. The Delhi on Tuesday provided an update on the case, stating that photos recovered from the shooter's phone had revealed that he joined the Aam Aadmi Party in 2019 -- something that his family denies. Kejriwal for his part, accused the BJP of "using" the police.
While unrelated to politics, the protesters also found themselves in the news following the death of a toddler. Four-month-old Mohammed Jahaan passed away last week after acquiring a severe cold and congestion following exposure to the winter chill at the outdoor demonstration. He used to accompany his mother almost every day to the site, and was a favourite with the protesters who would take turns to hold him and often draw the tricolour on his cheeks.
(With inputs from agencies)
