Even as people from across the nation continue to protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), about 500 students, members of a human rights group formed in the aftermath of the Bhima Koregaon violence — Mumbai Rises to Save Democracy, Aarey activists and common citizens gathered at the Dadar and Matunga Cultural Centre at 5 pm on Friday to participate in a peaceful free speech demonstration.

The demonstration, organised by the 'Mumbai Rises to Save Democracy', was held in the cultural centre's auditorium. While the opening musical act comprised a spin-off of the popular Hindi song 'Yeh hai Mumbai meri jaan' performed by one of the participants, its lyrics soon changed to 'Zara roko, zara toko, yeh hai Mumbai meri jaan. The panelists — Prakash Bhoir, Manisha Dhinde, Arfa Khanum and Prabhat Patnaik — inspired the crowd through their own stories of revolt against the authorities and survival. Wristbands with 'sedition' and 'Urban Naxal' written on them were handed out to members of the audience.