Ahead of Friday prayers, patrolling intensified
Security beefed up on the Uttar Pradesh-Delhi border, as well as in 15 districts, including Lucknow
LUCKNOW: Ahead of Friday prayers, the state police on Thursday intensified vigil and patrolling in districts on the Uttar Pradesh-Delhi border, as well as in 15 other districts, including Lucknow, which witnessed violence during anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests in December last year, police officials said.
A senior police official at the DGP headquarters in Lucknow said vigilance and patrolling was intensified in Kanpur, Agra, Mathura, Firozabad, Saharanpur, Baghpat, Gautam Budh Nagar, Bijnor, Bulandshahr, Meerut, Rampur, Bareilly, Moradabad, Aligarh, Muzaffarnagar and Sitapur. He said extra police force had been deployed in these districts.
Field officers have been asked to deal sternly with troublemakers. Inspector general (IG) of police, Law and Order, Vijay Bhushan said, “We are not going to allow anyone to disturb the peace and communal harmony. Anybody involved in any type of activity that may disturb law and order and cause trouble will be dealt with strictly.”
He said the state police social media cell was equally vigilant, adding that social media users will have to bear the brunt if they were found involved in posting and sharing inflammatory content as these may lead to rumourmongering and disturb the peace.
In Lucknow, commissioner of police (CP) Sujeet Pandey said the police were vigilant round the clock in the old city and heavy police force, including armed police personnel, had been deployed at the Clock Tower where anti-CAA protests were continuing for over a month now.He said heavy deployment was also done at important mosques where a massive gathering was expected for the Friday prayers.
“Our priority is to disperse people peacefully after Friday prayers and not allow them to gather on roads or any other public place,” he said.
“Intelligence sleuths have been deployed in plainclothes to keep vigil on activities in sensitive localities of the old city. Besides, local opinion leaders have been roped in to ensure peace,” he said. Senior superintendent of police (SSP), Ghaziabad, Kalanidhi Naithani said the police were vigilant on the border and barricades were put up for restricted movement of vehicles. He said multiple police patrol and response vehicles were deployed at the border.
“Police response vehicles have done an excellent job by rescuing families and commuters from rioters on the UP-Delhi border in the past two days. They have not allowed the Delhi rioters to enter UP and helped contain the situation,” he said.
Earlier, senior IPS officers were rushed to the field and asked to camp in sensitive districts, including Ghaziabad, Meerut, Aligarh, Muzafarrnagar, Moradabad, Baghpat, Hapur, Bulandshahr and Shamli.