Delhi police on Tuesday clashed with the street protestors lead by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the capital near Rail Bhavan, leaving more than a dozen people injured, including two policemen.
A group of Aam Admi Party (AAP) activists jumped barricades, set up around at the roads leading to the venue where chief minister Arvind Kejriwal was staging a sit-in for the second day, and clashes broke out when police started pushing them back.
There was heavy deployment of police at the high-security zone in central Delhi that houses Parliament, Prime Minister’s Office, various ministries and Rashtrapati Bhavan.
On the second day of a sit-in Kejriwal vowed to step up his unprecedented street protest amid a row over who controls the city’s police force.
Kejriwal and members of his cabinet spent the night in the open in the heart of the capital.
Police blocked roads as more protesters gathered to join Mr Kejriwal.
His anti-corruption Aam Aadmi Party caused a shock with its strong performance in recent state elections.
Correspondents say his actions have divided the public with some hailing this as a new form of democracy and public protest but others urging him to get off the streets in order to govern as he was voted to do.
Hundreds of policemen cordoned off the site of his demonstration and positioned water cannons on the road.
“Since yesterday no food or water has been allowed to enter the protest site. What message the central government wants to convey? Many people want to come but they are stopped through barricades,” Mr Kejriwal told reporters.
“Police [are] carrying people selectively in to the bus and beating them up. Is this called democracy?”
Kejriwal took the wheel as Delhi’s chief minister last month on a ticket to fight corruption and conduct politics differently, calling his party a “new broom”.
But he quickly became embroiled in a row over policing after one of his ministers accused officers of failing to crack down on an alleged drugs and prostitution ring – the police deny these claims.
Delhi’s police force is run by the federal government and the impromptu protest began on Monday when Mr Kejriwal was prevented from going to the home minister’s office to demand the suspension of several officers.
