New Delhi:
Violence tainted the second day of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's demonstration in the heart of Delhi as the police clashed with protestors who tried to storm through barricades and threw stones at them.
Leaders from Mr Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party or AAP said those who spurred the violence were not party workers and urged the crowd to rally peacefully. Four policemen were injured in the clashes.
As night fell, AAP supporters led by a defiant Mr Kejriwal remain camped at one of India's most high-security zones which houses Parliament, several ministries and the President's home.
The central government and the Delhi Police are left grappling with how to lockdown and sanitize the area for Sunday's Republic Day parade.
"What is the point of celebrating Republic Day if the people in the country are not happy with governance," Mr Kejriwal said.
Mr Kejriwal says the control of the Delhi Police must be transferred from the union Home Ministry to the Delhi government
Sources in the Centre said there is no question of leveraging Mr Kejriwal's protest to dismiss his government, which took charge of Delhi last month.
They also pointed out that Mr Kejriwal's stature as Delhi's highest elected official makes it ungainly for him to be forcibly removed from his sit-in.
The 45-year-old former tax inspector began his demonstration yesterday to protest against alleged inaction against crime by the Delhi Police. He spent the night sleeping on the road near his Wagon-R, delivering a front-page moment for the country this morning.
His critics say that his protest highlights his only real ability - to pull together demonstrations that grab media space and public attention, and that his Aam Aadmi Party is more interested in the upcoming national elections than governing the capital.