Panic grips Shaheen Bagh after man fires in air

NEW DELHI: A gun-wielding man fired two aerial shots from a country-made pistol near the police barricades in Shaheen Bagh area, which resulted in chaos and panic among the protesters. He was nabbed by the protesters on the spot and handed over to police.

Even when the man was in the grip of police, he was heard chanting “Jai Shri Ram” and was also shouting “Hamare desh mein kisi ki nahi chalegi, sirf Hinduon ki chalegi.

The man has been identified as Kapil Baisla (25), a resident of East Delhi’s Dallupura village and is a milk supplier.

The incident occurred around 4:45 pm on Saturday. Two days back, a teenager fired from a pistol at anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protesters at Jamia Millia Islamia, injuring a student.

According to sources, “couple of days ago Baisla got stuck in traffic jam while going to his sister’s wedding in Lajpat Nagar from Noida. He felt agitated which made him very upset and angry. He was claiming that he took this initiative due to that inconvenience. However, police said that they are verifying his identity.

Eyewitnesses said that while shouting “Hindu Rashtra Zindabad”, the man fired two rounds in air, standing near the police barricades, nearly 100 metres from Shaheen Bagh protest site.

“The accused fired in air near police barricades. He was overpowered by police personnel and taken into custody. A case has been registered under relevant sections,” said DCP (Southeast) Chinmoy Biswal.

Recounting the horror, Mirza Azhan Beg (25), a local resident said when he was standing in front of the accused, he started raising slogans “Jai Shree Ram”, “desh ke gaddaro ko goli maro” and “Yaha bas Hinduon ka raz chalega.”

One of the women protesters said they were inside the tent when the incident happened. “We rushed to the spot after hearing gunshots. Many women and children were there inside the tent when incident happened and started crying. Everyone is scared about their safety,” she said.

Another woman protester said that those who are against their protest are trying to scare them but the protesters will not step back. “The outsiders are trying to derail this movement but we will not let this happen,” she said.