The Delhi High Court on Friday rejected a petition seeking the removal of police barricades from New Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh area, where a sit-in against the Citizenship Amendment Act and the National Register of Citizens has been going on for almost a month now, reported ANI. The petitioner argued that the police barricades provided for the protests were causing traffic congestion on the Delhi-Noida Direct flyover. The petition also sought that the protestors be shifted elsewhere.

The plea, in the form of a letter, said the route from Delhi to Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand and some hospitals was unavailable due to the protest, and lakhs of people were suffering, PTI reported.

At Shaheen Bagh, protestors have occupied a main road since December 14 despite the bitter cold and threat of police action at any time. Hundreds gather there daily to speak up against a set of government moves that they believe will undo the Indian Constitution’s commitment to secularism. The protestors believe that the Citizenship Act amendments, and the National Register of Citizens promised by Home Minister Amit Shah, will be used as tools to harass Indian Muslims, even though Prime Minister Narendra Modi has insisted that these policies will not harm anyone. The protest features women at the forefront.

Shaheen Bagh hit headlines on New Year’s Eve as protestors gathered to wave the national flag and speak up against a set of government moves that they believe will undo the Indian Constitution’s commitment to secularism.