In Assam, seventy organisations carried out protest in front of the Janata Bhawan against Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016 on Friday, ANI reported.
Guwahati: 70 organisations in #Assam carrying out protest in front of the Janata Bhawan against Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016. pic.twitter.com/uPqRJGpcvh
— ANI (@ANI) November 16, 2018
These organisations led by the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) had organised a sankalp (vow) rally on last Sunday to force the Centre to scrap the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
The rally was kickstarted simultaneously from four points — Sadiya, Dhubri, Diphu and Jonai — with protesters on hundreds of motorcycles at each point. The rally culminated at Dispur today on November 16 where protesters in a large number gheraoed Janata Bhawan to press for the demand to scrap the bill.”
“Indigenous communities were leaving peacefully in Assam until the Congress brought Muslim Bangladeshis and created an identity crisis. Now, the BJP is trying to grant citizenship to Hindu Bangladeshis and aggravating the crisis,” he said.
There has been a series of protests in Assam and neighbouring Meghalaya over the bill that seeks to grant Indian citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan who fled to India fearing persecution till December 31, 2014.
“The 70 organisations have not created an atmosphere of disturbance. We are protesting against the disturbance created by the BJP and the RSS,” he said.
Last weekend, twenty-eight organisations had gathered under the aegis of the All Assam Students’ Union and had organised a protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, at Thana Chariali in Gwahati.
Protesters were carrying placards and shouting slogans against the BJP-led governments at the Centre and the state.
Anil Gogoi, secretary of AASU’s central organisation had then said, “We demand scrapping of the citizenship bill because it is anti-Assamese. We will teach the BJP a lesson in the panchayat elections because they have been playing with the sentiments of Assamese people. We are against the bill because it will have an adverse affect on society.”
