Shaheen Bagh protests: SC-appointed interlocutors Sanjay Hegde, Sadhna Ramachandran say right to dissent will be protected but not at cost of others

The Supreme Court-appointed mediation panel went to Shaheen Bagh on Wednesday in an effort to come to an understanding with the protesters who have been holding sit-in protests at a public road for over 45 days now.

Speaking to the media, senior advocate Sanjay Hegde, who is also a member of the panel said, "We have come here on the orders of Supreme Court. We hope to speak to everyone. We hope to resolve the matter with everybody's cooperation. We hope to speak to everyone inside and keep everyone briefed. There are no favorites and we hope to resolve the matter inside with everyone's cooperation."

He also urged the media to respect the sanctity and the privacy of the mediation process.

Sadhna Ramachandran, secretary of the arbitration department at Delhi High Court and also a member of the panel said that she remains hopeful of a mutually acceptable solution to the issue.

The mediators approached in the midst of a huge commotion. Several attempts to interact with the crowd appeared to fall short as the interlocutors were unable to communicate due to the noise. This was also due to the unorganised nature of the protests and the lack of a

However, after several appeals for silence, the interlocutors were able to command the crowd's attention. Hegde started off by reading out the Supreme Court's order for the protesters while Ramachandran translated the order in Hindi.

Ramachandran said, "We are here hear you out. We wish to hear everyone out. But it is important for us to tell you that whatever may happen your right to protest will remain protected. However, we are here because one person's right to protest should not hinder another person's right to commute."

She said that she hopes that the protesters and mediators can come to a common ground. "We will find a solution that will be an example for not just India but the entire world," she added.

Another sticking point in their efforts to interact with the protesters was when the interlocutors tried to get the media to vacate the tent so that the mediation process can proceed in private. However, the protesters told the interlocutors that they want to speak to them in the presence of media.

The protesters have been on a sit-in against the new citizenship law for over two months amid intense media glare.

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