Nagpur: Bharat Banait, the 27-year-old Nagpur resident whose anguished cry of “Maaro Sir, Maaro” during the police lathi charge at a protest in New Delhi has gone viral, claimed he has shifted to a safe house, fearing police detention.Speaking to TOI, Banait said he moved out of his usual residence after the incident, as he fears action against those who participated in the protest. An MCom student and one of the earliest followers of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) in Nagpur, Banait said he helped organise the party’s first protest in the city before travelling to Delhi as part of a three-member team for Sunday’s march.Banait said that he was entrusted with the job of ensuring that a truck carrying protest material entered the barricaded area near Jantar Mantar. “I was standing near the barricades waiting for the truck,” he said. Banait claimed that the situation escalated after MP Chandrashekhar Azad crossed the barricades while some of his supporters attempted to follow him.“Azad was allowed through, but his supporters were stopped. They argued with the police, and suddenly a lathi charge began. I was standing beside them,” he said.“I kept telling the cops that I was protesting peacefully. Yet, they continued beating me. I was so frustrated that I shouted, ‘Maaro Sir, Maaro’. I felt like saying, just kill me now. Even people being shifted in ambulances were beaten. No treatment was provided immediately,” he recalled.
