Divisive Citizenship Act: Protests rage across India

Protests against the amended citizenship act slammed as anti-Muslim continued in Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru and West Bengal yesterday.

More than 20 people have died in the protests against the act since it was signed by President Ram Nath Kovind on December 11. Fifteen of these deaths have taken place in Uttar Pradesh, five in Assam and two in Mangaluru.

Top Congress leaders yesterday began a sit-in protest at Rajghat, the memorial of India’s Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi, in central Delhi.

Before joining the sit-in demonstration, Rahul had tweeted asking students and youth to show up at the event.

“It’s not good enough just to feel India. At times like these, it’s critical to show that you’re India and won’t allow India to be destroyed by hatred. Join me today at 3 PM at Raj Ghat, to protest against the hate and violence unleashed on India by Modi-Shah,” he said on Twitter.

Students staged a demonstration outside an Uttar Pradesh government house in New Delhi demanding a probe into police action against anti-CAA protester in the state where 16 people were killed in violence. The students were detained.

In Chennai, Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (DMK) and its allies yesterday took out a protest rally against the amendment act and seeking its withdrawal.

DMK president M K Stalin along with leaders of allies, including senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, and state unit leaders of the Left parties held a march in Chennai.

While Stalin, Chidambaram and other top leaders held placards against the CAA, cadres of DMK and allies raised slogans against the contentious act amidst elaborate security arrangements, including deployment of drones and about 5,000 police personnel are on security duty, police said.

In Bengaluru, thousands of people from Muslim community yesterday staged a “Peace Rally” against CAA and NRC. Waving the national flag and holding placards, the protesters raised slogans demanding withdrawal of CAA.

The rally, called by around 35 organisations under the banner of Joint Action Committee of Bengaluru, culminated at the Quddus Saheb Eidgah Maidan.

Elaborate security arrangements had been made to avert any untoward incident, which by-and-large remained peaceful till the afternoon, police said.

A report from Mangaluru, which was rocked by violent protests over the CAA last week leaving two people dead in police firing, said the city remained largely peaceful after curfew was lifted yesterday morning.

BJP Working President J P Nadda yesterday spearheaded a street march in Kolkata in support of the law critics say discriminates against Muslims.

Nadda, accompanied by senior BJP leaders, including West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh and national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, participated in the march that originated from Hind cinema in central Kolkata and culminated at Shyambazar.

BAR ON MEDIA CAMPAIGN

In an apparent jolt to the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal, the Kolkata High Court yesterday directed suspension of all state-sponsored media campaigns against CAA and National Register of Citizens (NRC).

A division bench of the court, in an interim direction, asked the state government to suspend all such advertisements till it gives a final order on the issue. The next hearing in the case is slated for January 9.

The High Court direction by a division bench of Chief Justice T B N Radhakrishnan and Justice Radhakrishnan came on six pleas that were filed against state government advertisements which allegedly claimed that CAA and NRC will not be implemented in the state.

Mamata Banerjee has been highly critical of the amended act passed by parliament and proposed countrywide NRC and undertook street marches vowing not to allow their implementation in the state.

The CAA seeks to give citizenship to “persecuted” non-Muslim refugees from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh who have taken shelter in India till 2014.

The bench has been hearing petitions on issues like state’s campaign against the CAA in various forms of media, “breakdown” of law and order situation and damage to railway property.

The bench also asked the railways to give a detailed report on what action it has taken to prevent loss of public property and the monetary amount of damage caused during the violent protests against CAA, NRC.

In Kolkata’s Jadavpur University, student owing allegiance to Leftist outfits yesterday showed black flags to West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar and surrounded his car for about half an hour protesting his views in support of CAA and NRC.