Defying the government’s prohibitory orders throughout the state, several Samajwadi Party leaders have come together to protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act in front of the legislative assembly complex in Lucknow on Thursday. Despite tight security arrangements, they have decided to stage sit-in protests against the controversial CAA on the orders of the party’s National President Akhilesh Yadav.
Those protesting include Ram Magan Rawat, Arvind Singh Gope, Dr Kuldeep Ujjwal, Rajeev Kumar Singh, Rakesh Verma, Fareed Mehfooz Kidwai and Ramgopal Rawat among other members. However, some SP members were detained and some even had to face lathi-charge by police. Former minister Kamal Akhtar, along with other protestors has been arrested from Amroha and several others have been detained in Mathura and Lucknow. The police resorted to lathi charge to stop protestors from continuing with the agitation. District President Lokmanikant Jadaun, Vice President Ranveer Singh Dhangar and Regional leaders Pradeep Chaudhary, Pawan Chaudhary and Bharat Chaudhary were arrested by the police.
#NewsAlert – Samajwadi party workers protest against CAA at Hazratganj, Lucknow. #CAAshowdown pic.twitter.com/s8GmXdTlr1
— News18 (@CNNnews18) December 19, 2019
#Samajwadi party #workers #arrested by the #police in #Mathura for violating section 144 of CrPC imposed by the DM in the district. The workers were #protesting against the #law and order situation in the #state. @TOIWestUP @timesofindia pic.twitter.com/lLdZr9qG4X
— Anuja Jaiswal (@anujajTOI) December 19, 2019
#Breaking | Lathicharge by U.P police over @samajwadiparty workers at the collectorate in Lucknow anti-CAA, NRC protest.
TIMES NOW’s Amit Haque with details. pic.twitter.com/HUum2hRjll
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) December 19, 2019
In Lucknow, SP MLA Rajesh Yadav climbed the legislative assembly complex gate shouting slogans ‘Yogi Baba Mast, Pradesh Mein Kanoon Vyavastha Dhwast’. In Mathura, protestors shouted slogans against PM Modi and CM Yogi Adityanath and SP District President burnt an effigy of the CM.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) has announced a sit-in protest at all its district headquarters in Uttar Pradesh on December 19, 2019 on various issues, including the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and farmers’ issues. Keeping the protests in mind, the police had already imposed Sec 144 in the state.
— Samajwadi Party (@samajwadiparty) December 18, 2019
A press note posted by Chief Spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary on Facebook yesterday had quoted Akhilesh Yadav as saying, “The Bharatiya Janata Party that has a majority in the state is trying to overthrow the values of the democracy and the Constitution of India. In bringing the CAA, it is trying to play the politics of ‘divide and rule’. There are protests going on all over the country against this. Because of the autocracy of the government, the individual’s freedom too is getting muzzled. There will definitely be a protest on December 19 through which the Samajwadi Party will try to bring the attention of the government to the real issues plaguing the people.”
The post also read, “The state has tried to crush all the youth and activists who have risen in dissent against the CAA. Students are being removed from hostels and even female students are being harassed by the authorities. By trying to portray the students as violent, the government is trying to undermine their fight. The students are being falsely charged and framed. The right to protest is a fundamental right and with such actions the authorities are only trying to intimidate the protestors.”
The statement called also called the government’s attention to real issues the failing law and order situation in the state, the increasing number of crimes against women, the anti-farmer policies, the sorry plight of the health and education system, the increasing unemployment and the rising inflation.
The entire statement by the Samajwadi Party National President may be read here.
Akhilesh Yadav has been vocal in his opposition against the CAA. Tweeting against the BJP government he alleged that it was conspiring to divide the country and society on religious lines by bringing in the Act. He said that the process of bringing in the act had caused a lot of resentment among the people and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was playing the politics of seduction, trying to gain a larger vote bank and divert the attention of the people from real issues like the economic recession.
CAA के नाम पर देश में हो रही धर्म आधारित विभाजनकारी राजनीति। नौजवानों और छात्रों पर हो रहे अत्याचार। केंद्र सरकार की विनाशकारी अर्थिक नीति से छिनते एवं खत्म होते रोजगार के खिलाफ उत्तर प्रदेश विधानसभा परिसर में समाजवादी पार्टी विधायकों की ‘ललकार’ ! विशाल धरना प्रदर्शन! pic.twitter.com/QTnHcPzCyA
— Samajwadi Party (@samajwadiparty) December 19, 2019
— Samajwadi Party (@samajwadiparty) December 19, 2019
The peaceful protestors have been subjected to lathi charge by the police once more. Once more, the powers given to the state have been misused to curb dissent which has become a trend in states run by the BJP government.
The fact that protestors are showing up in large numbers despite prohibitory orders shows that there is an undying and undeterred spirit of agitation against unconstitutional laws being imposed by the State.
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