Mumbai, 23 July

The image of a young woman in a grey hoodie, standing unflinchingly with her arms outstretched to stop a police van amid heavy downpour, has become one of the defining moments of Mumbai's protests in solidarity with the Cockroach Janta Party's agitation over the NEET paper leak. As the CJP protest over examination irregularities raged in Delhi, youngsters took to the streets of the financial capital on Wednesday in support, condemning the alleged police brutality against agitators during the 'Sansad Chalo' march.

In the widely shared video of the demonstration, the woman is seen stopping a police vehicle carrying detained protesters, while fellow demonstrators shouted slogans that brought traffic to a grinding halt on the busy road.

Speaking to local reporters, the woman asserted, "While the police are doing their job, they are not doing it responsibly. If no one is taking responsibility, we will take responsibility for our citizens."

"I am not a student, my father is not a farmer, nor am I. I am not a Dalit or belong to the OBC community, but what they did to the students (in Delhi) is wrong. They have to own up to their actions," she said, questioning if the protesters in Delhi were not allowed to reach the Parliament, what has stopped Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan from meeting them at the protest site.

The woman, identified as Rhiya, is an actor, model, and an entrepreneur, as per her Instagram bio. She has around a lakh followers on Instagram and has been seen in music videos. She featured in the video song 'Dilbara'.

While her action turned out to be one of the most telling moments of the protest in Mumbai, another viral video captured a group of youngsters trailing a police van and unlatching its rear door from the outside to free detained fellow protesters, who trooped out of the moving vehicle.

Political parties, activists and students braved the rains and took to the streets for a third consecutive day on Wednesday over exam irregularities and police crackdown on protesters in Delhi.

The Mumbai Police have registered 13 FIRs since July 18 in connection with the ongoing protests on charges of unlawful assembly and violation of prohibitory orders, booking 400 people.

While demonstrations were staged at various places including Shivaji Park, Chaityabhoomi, Chembur and Shiv Sena Bhavan, no permission had been granted, police said.

Social media platforms also featured heart-warming moments from the protests. One widely circulated clip showed agitators marching through the rain as senior citizens cheered them on from the balconies of nearby chawls.

Another video, reportedly shot in the central suburb of Dadar, captured a sea of demonstrators parting respectfully to clear a path for children making their way to a school bus.

Mumbai police have imposed prohibitory orders barring assembly of five or more persons in public places from July 23 to August 6, citing apprehensions of breach of peace and disturbance to public tranquillity.