Actress Sumona Chakravarti revealed that her car was mobbed by Maratha quota protesters in South Mumbai on Sunday, August 31. The protests, led by Manoj Jarange at Azad Maidan with thousands of supporters, entered their third day, demanding a 10% quota for Marathas under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. The actress said she felt unsafe and questioned the law and order, calling it a 'complete mockery of civic sense' after witnessing streets littered with banana peels, plastic bottles, and filth.
Sumona Chakravarti Car Mobbed By Maratha Quota Protesters
The actress took to her Instagram handle and wrote, "12:30 this afternoon. I'm driving from Colaba to Fort. And suddenly-my car is blocked by a mob. One man with an orange stole banging on my bonnet, smirking. Pressing his protruding belly against my car. Shimmying in front of me like he's proving some sick point. His friends banging on my windows, shouting "Jai Maharashtra!" & laughing. We moved a little ahead & repeat of the same thing. Twice in a span of 5 mins.
Further, she added that she later saw police, but they were just sitting, chatting, with no law and order. Sumona said that in her car, in broad daylight in South Bombay, she felt unsafe, while the streets were piled with banana peels, plastic bottles, and filth.
"Pavements taken over. Protesters eating, sleeping, bathing, cooking, pissing, shitting, video calling, making reels, doing Mumbai darshan in the name of protest. A complete mockery of civic sense," she added.
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'I Felt Genuinely Unsafe': Sumona Chakravarti
Sumona shared that despite living in Mumbai all her life and usually feeling safe, especially in South Bombay, for the first time in years, she felt genuinely unsafe in broad daylight inside the supposed safety of her car. She expressed relief at having a male friend with her, questioning what might have happened if she had been alone
She added, "I was tempted to record a video but quickly realised that this might provoke/instigate them further. So I didn't. It's frightening when you realize that no matter who you are, or where you are, law and order can collapse in seconds. Peaceful protests exist- we've seen them for causes far more urgent. And yet, those are the ones the police clamp down on. But here? Absolute lawlessness."
"As a tax paying citizen, as a woman, and as someone who loves this city, I'm left disturbed. We deserve better than this mockery of governance and civic responsibility. We deserve the right to feel safe in our own city," concluded the actress.
