u2018 Cops questioned me about my dafl i, Mumbai Baghu2019

Continued from page u0010 u000f I BOOKED a cab from Silver Beach, . uhu, on Wednesday around u009d . . u00a1 u00a2 pm to go to Kurla, where I am staying.

u201c After u00a0 . minutes of the conversation, the driver Rohit Singh stopped the cab and asked me if he can withdraw cash from an ATM. I agreed.

The Uber driver told the cops, u2018 Sir aap isko andar lo, ye desh jalane ki baat kar raha hai, bol raha hai main communist hoon, hum Mumbai mein Shaheen Bagh bana denge, mere paas poori recording haiu2019. When I asked him what part of my conversation offended him, he told me, u2018 Main kahin aur le jaa sakta tha tujhe, shukr mana police station laaya hunu2019 Sarkar was apparently grilled by four to five police officers about his personal life, his parentsu2019 salary, about funding for the protests, why women are protesting, who are the organisers, and why he was carrying a tambourine ( dafli). u201c Dafli is a musical instrument. Why do they have a problem with it? Is the government scared of dafli being played at different protests? Is me carrying dafli a crime,u201d said Sarkar.

u201c I was asked to name the communist- ruled states in the country. An officer was jotting down details in a diary. It was then that I felt unsettled.

I was fearful throughout the night. I texted Rahul Chowdhary, the district secretary of CPI( ML) . aipur, and a few other friends. They rescued me,u201d Sarkar added.

The zonal deputy commissioner of police, Paramjitsingh Dahiya, confirmed that Sarkar was taken to Santacruz police station by a cab driver. u201c Sarkar was allowed to go after verification at the police station,u201d Dahiya said.

u201c What rights do police have to ask personal questions? They asked him if he is a leftist or communist.

People are free to travel from one state to the other. His social media accounts were also scanned at the police station. This is absolute harassment,u201d said Kavita Krishnan, secretary of All India Womenu2019s Association.

Bappadittya Sarkar is a Jaipur- based poet u2018 Cops questioned me about my dafl i, Mumbai Baghu2019