Police in Uttar Pradesh arrested several Dalit activists from the Press Club in the state capital, Lucknow, where they had gathered to hold a news conference.
The activists had planned a rally after the press conference. The administration had not given them the permission for the rally, said several reports.
Former IPS officer SR Darapuri & 8 others arrested by police for planning to hold a protest against UP CM Yogi Adityanath at his residence pic.twitter.com/cjQGMmSRl3
— ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) July 3, 2017
Among those arrested are Dalit leaders Ramesh Dixit, Ram Kumar and retired IPS officer SR Darapuri.
The arrested leaders said that they intended to highlight the “atrocities against Dalits.”
Darapuri, for his part, said that as many as 50 Dalits had been stopped in Jhansi on Sunday from reaching Lucknow, where they were expected to hand over a gigantic bar of soap to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
After retiring from the police service, Darapuri had joined the All India People’s Front (Radical), a political outfit. He had also contested the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Robertsganj.
In May this year, a day before Adityanath’s visit to Mainpur Deenapatti village in Kushinagar district, Musahar Dalit families had received two soaps and a sachet of shampoo, and instructions to “clean themselves” before attending the public meeting.