18 detained for bid to stage protest at Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi

Eighteen persons were detained connected Monday (January 19, 2026) erstwhile they attempted to signifier a protestation astatine the Manikarnika Ghat successful Varanasi alleging that a statue of Rani Ahilyabai Holkar had been damaged during the ongoing redevelopment work.

The protesters, believed to beryllium from the Pal community, gathered astatine the Ghat, chanting slogans against the administration. “Without permission, they indulged successful sloganeering. When the mob was stopped from raising slogans and staging a sit-in protestation astatine a nationalist spot without permission, they became convulsive and started abusing and pushing the police. In this regard, 18 persons person been detained and ineligible enactment is being taken,” said a connection from the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Kashi.  The protesters alleged that the constabulary utilized unit to disperse them arsenic they tried to taxable a memorandum of their demands to the territory administration.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav questioned the constabulary enactment alleging lathi charge. “Police lathicharged the protestation of Pal assemblage astatine the Manikarnika Ghat successful Varanasi and arrested much than a twelve protesters. Now BJP supporters volition accidental this quality is besides made with AI. Someone delight explicate to them: not everything is AI. The nationalist is asking the BJP, ‘What are you doing erstwhile everything is being done with AI?’ Has the BJP, successful speech for commissions, outsourced the authorities to AI? The nationalist is adjacent questioning however idiosyncratic successful a liable presumption could archer specified a blatant prevarication astir the demolition by bulldozer, which was livestreamed connected Facebook. Could it beryllium that idiosyncratic utilized AI to videotape specified irresponsible and blatant lies? Only AI could archer specified a ‘moral lie’ astir an onslaught connected religion and culture. A genuinely spiritual idiosyncratic is simply a God-fearing person,” Mr. Yadav wrote connected X, indirectly hitting retired astatine the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. 

Manikarnika Ghat is 1 of the holiest cremation grounds successful Hinduism, believed to assistance ‘moksha’ oregon liberation from the rhythm of commencement and death, and taste value for devotees crossed the country. It deed headlines aft immoderate radical and societal media users alleged demolition of a operation during redevelopment portion the medication accused individuals, including Congress leaders, of allegedly spreading AI-generated images and misleading accusation connected societal media regarding the redevelopment enactment astatine the Ghat successful Varanasi.