Ujjain (MP), Sept. 28 -- A group of people hurled stones at police while protesting against the proposed demolition of a portion of a mosque for a road-widening project in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain city on Monday, officials said.
The police then used tear gas to disperse the crowd, they said, as tension prevailed in the area. The protest occurred ahead a hearing likely later in the day before the Madhya Pradesh High Court's Indore bench on a petition concerning the proposed demolition of a portion of the Shahi Masjid. The road from Kanthal crossing to Gopal Mandir is being widened to 15 metres ahead of the 2028 Simhastha Kumbh. The project involves widening a roughly 900-metre stretch and removal or modification of structures falling within the proposed alignment.
Superintendent of Police Pradeep Sharma said some people attempted to create a disturbance, following which police tried to persuade them to cooperate and subsequently used mild force to disperse them. On Sunday, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav personally used a pickaxe to begin removing a portion of his ancestral house in Ujjain to kick off the road-widening work. The protest on Monday was against a proposed action to remove a portion of the Shahi Masjid as part of the road-widening project, sources said.
SP Sharma, in a video message, said all sides had been cooperating with the administration in preparations for Simhastha 2028 and police were making efforts to resolve the issue through dialogue. Police made arrangements (for removal work for road-widening) from around 4 am and were monitoring the area through cameras and drones. Some people attempted to create a disturbance, following which police tried to persuade them to cooperate and subsequently used mild force to disperse the crowd, he said.
Action would be taken against those found involved in creating any disturbance, he added. The road is an important and busy link in the city, and the widening is aimed at improving traffic management during the Simhastha Kumbh Mela in 2028, officials said. On September 9, the High Court dismissed petitions challenging the proposed removal of the portion of the Shahi Masjid falling within the road alignment. An appeal by the mosque authorities was listed for hearing on Monday.
Security has been stepped up in the area following the protest, the officials said. The road-widening exercise is part of a larger project in Ujjain, under which 272 structures, including religious sites, are set to be affected. The state government has sanctioned around Rs 9.8 crore for the project. CM Yadav, after digging up a part of his ancestral home for the road-widening project on Sunday, said that when it comes to city development, public servants should be the first to set an example.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.