Hundreds of people on Friday walked through the heart of Calcutta in searing heat and humidity to resist the “politics of polarisation” that they said was behind Wednesday’s bulldozer demolition drive in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri.

The participants started from near Tipu Sultan Masjid and walked till Mahatma Gandhi’s statue on Mayo Road. The majority of the marchers were Muslims, many of them women. A number of non-Muslims, too, walked side by side.

At the rally, anger at BJP-led governments at the Centre and states was evident. And so was a resolve to fight.

“Be it Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Assam or Delhi, it is heartbreaking to see our brothers and sisters facing non-stop harassment. After every atrocity, you think things cannot become worse. But the next day, you are mistaken,” said Anam Zubeen, one of the marchers.

“It is tough to say what is worse, the atrocities or the impunity with which they are being committed,” said Zubeen, who is pursuing her bachelor’s in English literature from a city college.

On Wednesday, the demolitions at Jahangirpuri allegedly went on even after the Supreme Court had issued a stay. Eventually, the drive that had smashed portions of a mosque, halted in front of a temple at the end of the street.

At the rally in Calcutta on Friday, Manzar Jameel, an activist, spoke of a “planned economic onslaught against Muslims”.

He spoke of Muslim vendors being barred from putting up stalls outside temples in Karnataka.

“The saffron brigade is following the template of Nazi Germany's treatment of Jews. In all aspects of everyday life, Muslims are being projected as the ‘other’,” said Jameel.

“But the majority of Indian Hindus are against this brand of Hindutva. They fought with us during the protests against the NRC. They will fight with us now,” he said.

The rally started around 2pm, after the Friday prayers. The afternoon sun was blazing. The mercury was around 34 degrees Celsius and the RealFeel was 43 degrees, thanks to the high humidity.

Many of the marchers were fasting for Ramazan. But they shouted their hearts out as they walked along Jawaharlal Nehru Road in Esplanade.

Abdul Aziz, who repairs old electronic appliances at Chandni Chowk, was one of them.

“Why do you think I am walking,” he asked this newspaper before giving the answer himself. “I am walking because I may be the next target. I am tired of living in constant fear.”

An ambulance got stuck behind the rally near Y-Channel. The organisers made way for the ambulance to pass.

Representatives of the Sikh and Buddhist communities also took part in the rally.

At the Gandhi statue, a handful of people gave brief speeches.

Most of them said the aim of the attempt to polarise people on religious lines was to divert attention from the failures of the Union government.

“The price of petrol is over Rs 115. Diesel has crossed Rs 100. Cooking gas costs Rs 1,000. The onus is on us, the people of this country, to not be swayed by communal discourse. We should keep the focus on real issues,” said Prasun Bhowmik, poet and activist.

Rights activist Sujato Bhadra said the BJP's recent victories in the state elections, most notably in Uttar Pradesh, had emboldened the

Right-wing ecosystem to fast-track the “Hindu Rashtra agenda”.

“The constant targeting of Muslims is a prelude to the 2024 general election,” he said.