By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter
The very first season of Lucknow literary festival has faced a huge setback after Hindutva radical outfits protested on the venue. Following the protest, Lucknow administration has put a ban on the event, leaving organisers worried.
Ex-JNU Students Union president Kanhaiya Kumar landed in Lucknow yesterday to take part in the festival as one of the speakers. To be held at the city’s famous Sheroes cafe – built and run by acid attack survivors – the festival could not inaugurate the festivals as goons from Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha and Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) started raising slogans against the presence of Kanhaiya Kumar.
The protesters did not let Kanhaiya speak or clear his stance for more than 30 minutes.
Protesters broke the gates and raised slogans labelling Kumar as “anti-national” who was at the fest to talk on his bestseller ‘From Bihar to Tihar’.
The calmness could be brought when acid attack survivors stepped on the stage to calm the protestors down, then after the event could get commenced.
https://www.facebook.com/anas.journalist/videos/10215165900968833/
https://www.facebook.com/anas.journalist/videos/10215166349700051/
(Acid attack survivors trying to calm down the protesters (From the Facebook wall of Mohammad Anas)
Kumar, who was allegedly manhandled during the protest, later said that he could not be labelled as anti-national as he himself hails from the family of freedom fighters.
Lucknow administration saw the event as a “disruption” that is why an order was issued on Friday late night cancelling the permit of the event, which has been scheduled to have speakers such as Kanhaiya Kumar, Shatrughan Sinha, Asaduddin Owaisi and many renowned journalists.
However, organisers could not get the hands on the order copy until the late Saturday. The order said that the organisers violated the rules of the permit, hence the administration had to cancel the permit.
The administration has employed police personnel at the grounds of Sheroes café to prevent the event from commencing.