The second day of protests over the Constitution was marked by violence as police battled demonstrators and looters in Nairobi streets yesterday.

Armed officers whisk a protester into a waiting van on Harambee Avenue.

A suspected looter was killed next to a shop on Tom Mboya Street and several people injured in the afternoon mayhem that paralysed business on one side of the city.

Protests also took place in Mombasa, Kisumu and Nakuru, but there were no reports of injuries.

The demonstrations were called by the Liberal Democratic Party, Kanu and civil society organisations to protest against changes to the draft constitution by Members of Parliament during a retreat in Kilifi last weekend.

As the riots went on in the streets, MPs began debate on the amendments to the draft constitution.

But it was mired in legal arguments as some MPs questioned its constitutionality and a Cabinet minister and two MPs were kicked out for unbecoming conduct.

Water Minister Martha Karua and MPs Charles Keter and Gideon Moi were ordered out of Parliament as tempers and emotions ran high in a debate described by the Speaker Francis ole Kaparo as a "momentous occasion" in the history of the country.

And Environment minister Kalonzo Musyoka broke ranks with the Government-favoured position to back the recommendations when he warned the President would be courting treason were he to assent to a constitution borne out of yesterday’s debate.

Said Kalonzo: "By assenting to the new constitution after it goes to the referendum, the President will be committing treason, having sworn to uphold the current Constitution in view of Section 47."

Parliament Buildings was a no-go zone for motorists and pedestrians as lawmakers began debate on a Motion on the Draft Constitution yesterday.

He was backed by Kalonzo, Opposition Whip Justin Muturi, Mbita MP Otieno Kajwang’ and his Emuhaya counterpart Kenneth Marende.

Later in the evening, confusion reigned in the House after Cabinet minister Raila Odinga, MPs Justin Muturi, William Ruto and Mutula Kilonzo brought to the attention of the chair the existence of a "strange" document.

The four accused the PSC of authoring a new draft document, contrary the Consensus Act. They accused the committee, chaired by Nyachae, of acting outside the mandate of the Act.

Raila said that in the PSC they deliberated on contentious issues and later proposed amendments, but that what Nyachae tabled was a completely new draft constitution.

Concurring with the members, the Speaker said there was a surplus of documents.

Earlier, Eldoret North MP William Ruto lost his bid to block the motion when House Speaker Francis ole Kaparo allowed debate on the motion to proceed.

The motion by the chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on constitutional review, Mr Simeon Nyachae, seeks to have the Attorney-General, Mr Amos Wako, draft the constitution review Bill that will be subjected to a referendum vote.

The motion follows changes the draft agreed on at the National Constitutional Conference at Bomas of Kenya last year. Both Kanu and LDP have insisted that the Bomas Draft should be taken to the referendum and rejected the Kilifi changes.

The Kilifi draft differs significantly from the Bomas one on the powers of the president and the prime minister, the levels of government and citizenship, among other key issues.

Kaparo said the motion was straight-forward. He said that although he had his misgivings and doubts about the whole review process, he would better remain silent.

The speaker said the constitutional process had undergone a very rough terrain and wondered aloud how times had changed since the agitation for a new constitution began.

Outside the House, police battled the rioting mobs using teargas and live bullets.

And for the second day running all roads near Parliament Buildings were sealed off as police blocked civil society activists from disrupting debate on constitutional review.

Looters and hooligans joined in, destroying property as they took charge in downtown Nairobi.

Police used live bullets to disperse the crowds after students of the Kenya Polytechnic joined the rioters.

These activists found the going tough and threw in the towel as policemen on horseback moved in to disperse demonstrators on Harambee Avenue, Nairobi.

The students took control of Haile Selassie Avenue, shouting insults at the police and stoning motorists and members of the public. Several people were clobbered by police or injured in the running battles. Police were not spared in the battles as at least six of them were bleeding after being hit by stones.

There was conflicting information on the man’s death, with people at the scene saying he was shot by the police and the law enforcers saying he was stoned by an angry mob. Nairobi Police boss, Mwangi King’ori said the man was stoned to death by members of the public after shop owner raised the alarm.

Witnesses said the man was in the company of three people who had broken into a clothes and mobile phones shop when police shot him at about 5.40pm.

The other men escaped with bullet injuries. The shop was robbed of property of an unknown value. Several other shops were broken into and property looted.

Trouble began at about 2pm when a group of civil society activists assembled at KenCom House and started marching towards Parliament through Harambee Avenue.

Police confronted them with teargas canisters and clubs at Jogoo House, arresting six of them.

About 20 minutes later Kenya polytechnic students streamed out of their classrooms, demanding that Parliament should stop mutilating the Bomas Draft.

They vandalised the City Square Post office, looting property and stoning motorists before police repulsed them.

At one point the students overpowered the officers who threw several teargas canisters at them before they turned to live bullets after running out of the rubber ones.

By 4pm part of the city centre was paralysed forcing commuters to trek home. There were massive jams on roads leading to the central business district.

A crowd surged at the Moi Avenue/Haile Selassie roundabout and started stoning police who also hit back. The crowd went on a looting spree and started stoning motorists.

By 6pm the police who appeared tired were battling out with the crowds that became furious after the officers threw teargas at them.

More reinforcement was called to back the over 500 police officers who had been deployed there for the better part of the day.