Hyderabad: Twenty persons were detained by the City Police when they tried to stage a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act and the National Citizenship Register after Friday prayers at Charminar.
Around 500 youngsters came out of the Mecca Masjid after the Friday prayers and raised slogans against the CAA and the Union government for introducing it. The protests continued for nearly half an hour. As more and more people were joining in and there was no permission for protest rally or demonstration, the police began detaining the youngsters.
Mild tension prevailed when the group started dispersing and hurled footwear at the police personnel. The City Rapid Action Force personnel under the supervision of Joint Commissioner of Police Avinash Mohanthy and ACP Charminar B Anjaiah swung into action and dispersed the gathering by chasing them till Moghalpura.
Even as the police team was busy dispersing a section of the crowd, another group gathered near the Mecca Masjid and started raising slogans. Teams of the Commissioner’s Task Force and the Quick Response Team of the city police dispersed the crowd into the lanes of Panch Mohalla.
Normalcy was restored at the Charminar around 3 pm. As a precautionary measure, the police pickets are being continued at Mecca Masjid and Charminar. Small protests were held elsewhere in the city at Mehdipatman and Amberpet by a few independent groups.
At Azizia Masjid at Mehdipatnam, youngsters gathered on the road after the Friday prayers and sang the national anthem.