The Kalindi Kunj-Shaheen Bagh stretch that connects Delhi with Noida was opened briefly on Friday after 69 days of remaining closed due to the ongoing protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA). Restrictions were imposed on the Kalindi Kunj-Shaheen Bagh stretch and Okhla underpass on December 15 last year.
However, there is no official confirmation yet on the resumption of traffic for about 40 minutes on the key road near Shaheen Bagh.
The Kalindi Kunj stretch is important as it connects Delhi, Faridabad (Haryana) and Noida (Uttar Pradesh) and commuters who use these roads were earlier forced to take alternative routes Delhi-Noida-Delhi (DND) Expressway and Ashram.
Friday's development comes after Supreme Court-appointed interlocutors met women protesters at Shaheen Bagh on Wednesday and Thursday to find a solution to the deadlock over disruption of road traffic in the area and resultant .
A plea was filed in the Supreme Court on February 3 seeking a direction to the authorities to remove Shaheen Bagh protesters, saying they are causing hardship to people by blocking arterial road connecting Delhi to Noida.
On Monday, while hearing the plea regarding re-opening of the road, the Supreme Court told the Shaheen Bagh protesters to come to a "reasonable solution" so that roads are no longer blocked. It said, “There must be a balance. This could create chaos,” a two-judge bench comprising justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and KM Joseph observed in course of a hearing on the Shaheen Bagh protest that has been blamed for causing inconvenience to people.
“The question is where should they protest... It should not be a place like a street,” the bench said right at the beginning of the hearing on Monday.
Two petitions had been filed in the Supreme Court by lawyer Amit Sahni and BJP leader Nand Kishore Garg to ask the top court to order anti-CAA protesters to end the road blockade on the Shaheen Bagh – Kalindi Kunj stretch.
