The Mumbai Police, on Tuesday, has detained a man named Vinay Dubey suspecting him of spreading the rumors that led to the mass gathering of migrant workers in Mumbai. The police suspect his social media video has led the migrant workers to the Bandra Station.
Activist Vinay Dubey, blamed for instigating migrants with social media posts like “Chalo Ghar Ki Ore (let’s head home)”, was arrested from his home in Navi Mumbai this morning.
On Tuesday, over 1,000 migrant workers deprived of jobs because the COVID-19 crisis came out in large numbers near the Bandra station completely defying the social distancing norm. Within two hours, they were dispersed using the police force. While the incident may have hindered the containment plans of the government in the city of Mumbai that has recorded the highest number of cases in the country. The incident also sheds light on the mismanagement in the handling of the migrant issue.
Viral Video led to the gathering
Vinay Dubey had posted a video of himself on the social media where spoke about the troubles faced by the migrant laborers in the state. In the video, he asked the government to make special train arrangements to the laborers that would help them reach their homes safely. Dubey had also called for a protest if the trains are not arranged until April 18th.
The Police now suspect that it is his video that could have led to the mass gathering at the Bandra Station. The police, unable to disperse the crowd, finally resorted to lathi charge. After two hours of the gathering, the police were successful in dispersing the crowd. Meanwhile, the police have filed FIRs against 700 unidentified people of violating the lockdown code and possibly helping the spread of an epidemic disease. Cases on Dubey has also been pressed as he has been handed over to the Azad Maidan Police.
The Union Home Minister Amit Shah called up the Chief Minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray and spoke about the incident and the migrant situation in the state. The Home Minister offered his full support to the state in its fight. Within hours of the incident, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray came live on all social media platforms and took the migrants into confidence. He asked them to maintain discipline for two weeks after which arrangements will be made to ensure they return home.
Source: Navbharath Times
