Noida: At mahapanchayat, Tyagi show of strength; residents back woman | Noida News

The mahapanchayat was held at Noida’s Ramlila Maidan Sunday

NOIDA: A protest call by the Tyagis brought thousands to Noida on Sunday morning in a show of solidarity against what they felt were attempts to tarnish the community’s image, reports Advitya Bahl.
Arriving in jeeps, tractors and buses and from as far off as MP and Bihar, community members gathered at Ramlila Maidan at Maharishi Ashram in Sector 110 amid tight security to chants of ‘Tyagi zindabad’ and carrying yellow ‘Jai Parshuram’ flags. Estimates put the size of the gathering at around 10,000.
The mahapanchayat was called in the wake of the episode this month involving Noida resident Shrikant Tyagiwho was booked for molestation, criminal intimidation, other IPC charges and under Gangsters Actfor abusing and pushing a woman at the Sector 93B society they live in.
At the condominium, meanwhile, banners against harassment, abusive language and encroachment went up in support of the woman.
Tyagi community slams invoking of Gangsters Act
Soon after Shrikant Tyagi, who was booked for allegedly abusing and pushing a woman in his society, was arrested on August 9 following a five-day search, community members began holding panchayats in western UP districts, which eventually took the shape of Sunday’s mahapanchayat. Community leaders took exception to Gangsters Act charges against Shrikant and the alleged harassment of his wife Anu by cops, which they viewed as excesses.
They also objected to terms like ‘Galibaaz Tyagi’ that were used on social media and certain sections of the media to refer to Shrikant. The other subject of their ire was BJP MP from Noida Mahesh Sharma. The parliamentarian’s public rebuke of police and the government on August 7 for failing to arrest Shrikant – after his supporters barged into the Sector 93B society and raised slogans in his support, leading to security fears among residents – was perceived as the spark that triggered the manhunt for Shrikant and drove cops to pursue stringent charges.
At the mahapanchayat, various speakers who took the stage sought Sharma’s removal as MP and asked BJP to take action against him. Om Tyagi, a community leader who had come all the way from Muzaffarnagar, said they wanted disciplinary action against police personnel “who mentally tortured Anu Tyagi (Shrikant’s wife)” and the withdrawal of charges Gangsters Act charges. “We want our sister Anu Tyagi to get justice. She is also a woman. Just like calls for justice for the woman living in the Sector 93B housing society, action should be taken against those cops who harassed Anu too.
Our other demand is that action should be taken by people who are calling Shrikant Tyagi ‘Galibaaz Tyagi’ and ‘Badtameez Tyagi’ because they are tarnishing the image of our caste and our children might suffer because of this,” Om said. Accusing BJP of abandoning Shrikant, he added, “He was working for BJP. After the incident, BJP leaders withdrew their support and sidelined our community.” Shrikant claims to be a member of BJP’s Kisan Morcha but the party had publicly denied any links with him after the video clip showing him misbehaving with the fellow resident surfaced on social media. The mahapanchayat began around 10am with large groups coming in from Ghaziabad, Muzaffarnagar, Bulandshahr, Baghpat and Hapur.