BAREILLY: In a show of protest against alleged atrocities against Dalits across UP, members of Dalit Shoshan Mukti Morcha (DSMM) gathered outside Vikas Bhavan in Moradabad, waving black flags at chief minister Yogi Adityanath . They said if cases lodged against them are not taken back, they will intensify their protest.As soon as the CM started a review meeting with the officials inside Vikas Bhavan, BSP supporters and DSMM members led by the organization's president Chandan Raidas marched towards the meeting venue waving black flags and shouting slogans. Though the agitators were stopped around 300 metres from Vikas Bhavan, they continued to raise slogans against the CM — "Yogiji go back" and "Dalit virodhi ye sarkar, nahi chalegi-nahi chalegi (anti-Dalit government can't run the state)".The police turned the area into a virtual fortress to prevent the protesters from reaching the CM.DSMM president Raidas said, "Dalits are being labelled as Naxals and terrorists if they raise their voice against the atrocities committed against the community by upper caste members and police. We will not hesitate in taking up arms and throwing state into chaos by indulging in arson if our voice is suppressed and cases are not taken back against Dalits in Saharanpur. In Saharanpur, police arrested and booked only Dalits. We will not tolerate such a 'Manuvadi' government in the state. We will step up our protest in the time to come."In the recent past, several incidents of violence involving Dalits have been reported in Saharanpur. On April 20, skirmishes broke out in Sadak Doodhli village over an Ambedkar Jayanti procession.On May 5, another clash occurred over a procession of Maharana Pratap taken out by Thakurs at Shabbirpur village, in which a Thakur man died and several people of both communities were injured.On May 9, a group of Dalits led by the Bhim army was on its way to hold a 'mahapanchayat' when they were stopped by the police, leading to stone- pelting and arson in which three policemen were injured.Chandan, who is also nagar unit president of BSP in Moradabad, came into limelight around five years ago after he got involved in a firing incident in the city. After stepping down from post of nagar unit president, he formed the DSMM and became its president.Earlier in the morning, the protesters had made an attempt to block National Highway-24 but it was foiled. The agitators accused the CM of paying lip service to taking up uplift of the downtrodden people while he had no clue about their ordeals.

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