NEW DELHI: Heavy traffic snarls were witnessed on Sunday in several parts of Delhi following protests by AAP workers against the summoning of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by the CBI in the excise policy case.
Vehicular movement was choked at the protest sites of Anand Vihar Terminal, ITO Chowk, Lado Sarai Chowk, Crown Plaza Chowk, New Delhi Railway Station, Bara Hanuman Mandir, Karol Bagh Chowk, IIT Crossing, Raj Ghat and NH 24 near Murga Mandi Gazipur, among others. Serpentine queues of vehicles clogged the roads owing to the protest. Commuters stuck at NH-44 and GT-Karnal Road tweeted pictures that showed long queues of vehicles.
Moving at a snail’s pace in bumper-to-bumper traffic, many commuters tagged the police in their social media posts and requested them to manage the situation. Police officials, along with the traffic unit deployed at multiple locations, persuaded the protesters to move from the roads and allow vehicular movement to flow.
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“We have deployed sufficient force at these locations. But the protesters are on a sit-in, so we are persuading them to move because they are causing heavy traffic jams. If they are refusing to cooperate, we are removing them from the spot,” a senior police official said.
The Delhi Police stepped up security outside the CBI headquarters as Kejriwal appeared before the agency for questioning in connection with alleged irregularities in the now-scrapped excise policy, officials said. The force deployed over 1,000 security personnel, including paramilitary forces, outside the CBI headquarters and Section 144 was also imposed to ensure no gathering of more than four persons takes place, they said.
Police ensured airtight security
Over 1,000 security personnel were deployed outside CBI headquarters and Section 144 was in force even as the Delhi CM appeared for questioning. Numerous barricades were placed on various roads by the police to ensure that AAP workers do not create any ruckus.
