PRAYAGRAJ, March 24 -- Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Sanjay Nishad on Monday staged a sit-in protest demanding the removal of a mosque and other alleged encroachments from the historic fort associated with Nishadraj Guhya at Shringverpur in Prayagraj. The protest was staged on the Handia-Kokhraj bypass near Shringverpur, where the minister and his supporters blocked the national highway, leading to a major traffic jam. Vehicular movement on the busy route connecting Kanpur and Varanasi remained disrupted for over two hours, causing inconvenience to commuters. Earlier, Nishad, who also heads the Nishad Party, reached Shringverpur to mark Nishadraj's birth anniversary. The party has long been demanding the removal of a mosque and other encroachments from the fort premises. Frustration reportedly escalated after repeated appeals failed to yield action, prompting the minister and his supporters to launch the protest. The mosque in question is said to have been built around 40 to 50 years ago, but few people offer namaz there. Around two years ago, Sanjay Nishad also staged a protest at the site demanding its removal. Located on the Ganga banks, about 35 km from the Sangam city along the Prayagraj-Lucknow highway, Shringverpur Dham is being developed as a major centre for rural, religious and spiritual tourism in Uttar Pradesh. Large numbers of party workers gathered at the site, raising slogans in support of Nishadraj and the Nishad community. During the protest, the demonstrators put forward several demands, including clearing the fort land of encroachment, removing the mosque from the premises, declaring Nishadraj Jayanti a public holiday and taking action against responsible officials. Senior administrative and police officials, including additional commissioner of police Pushkar Verma, reached the spot and discussed the matter with the minister. After prolonged negotiations and assurances that the demands would be placed before the district administration, the protest was called off around 1:55 pm. Traffic movement gradually returned to normal thereafter. Heavy police deployment was maintained in and around the disputed site to prevent any untoward incidents. Authorities said further action would depend on administrative review of the demands....