Citizenship bill | SabrangIndia

Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA 2019) : A hate-driven move

Tue, 31 Dec 2019 05:27:40 +0000

The Citizenship Amendment Act is in pursuit of the Sangh ‘s congenital hatred of Muslims. The sarsanghchalak of tje RSS, Hedgewar had declared way back in 1925 at its inception that its purpose was not to join the national movement against the British , but to oppose “the Yavan-snakes ( Muslims ) ,who , reared on the milk of non-cooperation , were provoking riots in the nation with their poisonous hissing.” Later , Sangh’s iconic Guru Golwarkar declared , “Hindus, do not waste your energy fighting the British Save it to fight the internal enemies that are the Muslims , the Christians and the communists.” In his book, We or Our Nationhood Defined, published in 1938, he categorically declared that ‘Muslims may stay in the country but wholly subjugated to the Hindu nation ,claiming nothing ,deserving no privileges ,far less any preferential treatment , not even citizen’s right .’ The Sangh never reconciled to the idea of an India in which Muslims enjoyed the same status and prestige as Hindus. It’s dream of a Hindu Rashtra was also inspired by a congenital hatred for Muslims that it has been harbouring for decades.The Jan Sangh ( present BJP ) was formed in 1951 with the sole purpose of making its dream of India as a Hindu Rashtra come true. One thing that has remained constant in the Sangh’s character and conduct has been its visceral hatred for the Muslims of India. And one goal which has remained the Sangh’s obsession and mission, has been to turn India into a Hindu Rashtra by complete subjugation of her Muslim citizens.

The repeated declaration of forcing the National Register of Citizens (NRC) on the whole country is a major step in that direction. The Citizen’s Amendment Act, too, is a corollary, now a pre-requisite to the same move. As many as 19 lakh plus have failed to find a place in the NRC in Assam. Out of the 19 lakh, more than 12 lakh are Hindus and 7 lakh plus are Muslims.They cannot deny citizenship to the 12 lakh Hindus ,who could not find a place in the NRC .The number of Hindus failing to prove their Indian citizenship in the country could swell to an unimaginable high figure, but they can not be made stateless. The Citizenship Amendment Act is aimed at meeting that contingency by giving citizenship to Hindus, Sikh, Buddhists, Jains, Christians Parsis i.e. to all except the Muslims. Thus, CAA 2019 serves several of their purposes: it grants citizenship to all illegal immigrants except Muslims thus winning their gratitude and votes and excludes the Muslims they hate and reduces their number, who they believe , vote against them. They are confident that opposition to the CAA by other parties would win them more Hindu votes . Thus, they believe that the CAA would place them in a win win situation.

Amit Shah has been arguing that the move is not against the Muslims but is meant to offer relief to the religious minorities suffering persecution on account of their religion in Muslim Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. This claim is false. Even Muslims suffer in these countries on account of their religion. In Pakistan, Ahmadiya Muslims are probably the most persecuted. They are not recognised as Muslims and are hated and savagely persecuted for claiming to be Muslims. The most glaring is the example of Nobel Laureate Abdus Salam. He was awarded the Nobel for Physics in 1979. Any country would have been proud of him, but he remained a persona non grate to the Muslim society of Pakistan. His love for Pakistan is exemplary. Despite hostility and rejection by Pakistan, he retained his citizenship of Pakistan though he lived and died in the U.K. Shia Muslims are also targeted by Sunni Muslims . Their mosques are attacked from time to time. The Baloch are also a persecuted Muslim community .They speak a language , which is a version of the language spoken in Iran.They are so persecuted that they are often reported to look towards India for help.Even Pakistan blames India for fomenting trouble in Balochistan.

Many Muslims are persecuted in Pakistan or Bangladesh for refusing to follow some Islamic practices which are not compatible with modern life or express views not compatible with the Quran. They may be even sentenced to death . Some of the laws based on the Sharia are inhuman . For instance , no one can be convicted of rape unless there are male witnesses to support the allegation (this might have been changed now). And if the allegation is not proven, the victim is liable to be punished. Death sentence is awarded also for blasphemy. The victims of these laws or practices, too, are persons persecuted for religious reasons. The author, Tasleema Nasreen of Bangladesh has been in India for years. All these are cases deserving the grant of citizenship by a civilized country for being victims of the State religion or not submitting to the inhuman provisions of the religion patronised by their government .

The greatest flaw of the CAA which exposes Sangh’s venomous bias is the assumption, without any basis that all non-Muslims (from Afghanistan ,Bangladesh and Pakistan) illegally living in India are victims of persecution due to their respective religion when the truth is that they may be here for bread and butter and other reasons emanating from India’s Partition .

(December 9, 2011, Day of Introduction of the Ignoble CAB)

The post Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA 2019) : A hate-driven move appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Tit for Tat

Mon, 30 Dec 2019 04:02:43 +0000

First, the CAB wrongly accused these countries of having persecuted its non-Muslim minorities and assumed that they were thus forced to illegally migrate to India.

Second, the NRC imperfectly identified the ‘foreigner’ mainly on account of lack of age-old documents or inadvertent discrepancies in names or dates, thus swelling the numbers of so-called ‘foreigners” to be kept in detention centers or forcibly deported back to their assumed countries of origin.

Third, the CAA arbitrarily decided to give citizenship to the non-Muslim illegal immigrants from these three neighbouring Muslim-majority countries and to forcibly deport back the rest of the ‘illegal’ Muslim immigrants from these countries.

Thereby, the GOI by its three-fold policy of NRC, CAA and NPR has successfully created conflicts with three of its immediate neighbours without being able to resolve the problem of illegal immigration and divided the nation and the citizenry on the basis of religion , even while the basic economic and social issues of poverty, growth, employment , housing, education, discrimination based on gender, caste, tribe and religion, remained unattended or neglected.

Now the Govts or civil societies of these three neighbouring countries are breaking their silence on India’s big brotherly policies and attitude.

Bangladeshi Foreign Minister has most recently reacted to India’s CAB thus :

“We will deport all the Indians residing illegally in Bangladesh.”

By Dr. Aurobindo Ghose, Human Rights Advocate, Supreme Court of India. Email : g_aurobindo@yahoo.com

The post Tit for Tat appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Resistance, revolution and resolve: How Indian students led the anti-CAA protests

Mon, 23 Dec 2019 11:25:36 +0000

Even since the President gave his assent to the new citizenship law, the resistance movement against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has grown, and the charge is being led by university students. But they have been punished for their bravery with police brutality that has been inflicted upon them with impunity with full blessings of a proto-fascist regime.

Delhi: When it comes to anti-CAA students protests, the one on December 16 at Delhi’s Jamia Millia Islamia University (JMIU) is perhaps the worst example of police brutality. Soon students from JNU and DU joined to express solidarity with their fellow students. Many DU students boycotted exams and hundreds even turned up outside the police headquarters to protest peacefully despite the biting cold. Students of Delhi IIT, AIIMS, Maulana Azad Medical College, Ambedkar University and National Law University also followed suit. Multiple peaceful protests have taken place across Delhi despite the administration trying to play spoilsport with tactics like strategic shut-down of Metro stations, internet and insinuations that protests had been infiltrated by ‘vested interests’ and terrorists.

Aligarh: The students of Aligarh Muslim University first held a protest on December 13 that was peaceful and passed without any incident of violence. But on December 16, when students spontaneously came together after the attack on JMIU to express solidarity with Jamia students facing police brutality, they faced a similar crackdown themselves.

Banaras: In a show of solidarity with their fellow students from JMIU and AMU, students of Banaras Hindu University (BHU) also held peaceful protests demanding justice for those facing police brutality.

Hyderabad: Students of Maulana Azad National Urdu University were among the first to express solidarity with students at JMIU and AMU. They were then joined by students of Osmania University and University of Hyderabad.

Mumbai: A series of protests were held in Mumbai, from one outside Mumbai University, to one at August Kranti Maidan that saw not just students but also people from all walks of life come together to defend the country’s secular and democratic values, to a protest at Carter Road in Bandra, to sporadic smaller protests in Kurla and other places across Mumbai. Students from TISS, IIT, Mumbai University, and many other private institutions have been at the forefront of anti-CAA protests.

Pune: In Pune, the charge was led by students of Savitri Bai Phule University. They held an hour-long sit-in protest on December 17 to express solidarity with JMIU students who had faced police brutality the previous evening.

Kolkata: Kolkata is no stranger to student protests with memories of the protest against Amit Shah and the subsequent attack on the Vidyasagar statue in the university campus still fresh in the minds of many. But even amidst the rather violent protests that have erupted across West Bengal, at least one of which involving pelting stones at trains was found to be triggered by BJP workers wearing skull caps, student protests at Jadhavpur University, Aliah University and Presidency College passed without relative turbulence.

Assam: Things turned ugly at Guwahati’s hostels where on December 12, 2019, the paramilitary forces laid siege to the Cotton University hostel, Guwahati University and Assam Engineering College hostels, and imprisoning students in the premises. Student of Tezpur University, Assam University and Dhibrugarh University also protested the CAA. There have been verbal accounts by locals in Tezpur saying that the Army has exercised its power against women, dragging them by their hair portraying their sheer brutality.

Bengaluru: In Bengaluru the charge was led by the students of the Indian Institute of Science and Jain University.

Chennai: There was a huge outpouring of students at protests in Chennai. These included students from IIT Madras, Loyola College, Mohammed Sathak College and Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development.

Puducherry: Students of University of Pondicherry also protested peacefully. In fact, they have decided to boycott convocation presided over by President Ramnath Kovind.

Kerala: Students from Central University (Kasargod), CUSAT (Kochi), Calicut University (Mallapuram) and MG University (Kottayam) also held a series of peaceful protests to not only express solidarity with their fellow protesting students across India, but also against the unconstitutional CAA.

Itanagar: Students of the Rajiv Gandhi University and NERIST also held peaceful protests against CAA. They led a huge rally from the university campus to Rajbhavan protesting the CAA.

Lucknow: Protests also took place in Lucknow with students from Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulema College and Lucknow University thronging the streets condemning the violence against students at JMIU and AMU.

Others: Students from Patna University, Chandigarh University, Panjab University, Chaudhary Charan Singh University, IIT Kanpur, Makhanlal Chaturvedi University, IIM Ahmedabad, Ahmedabad University and Nirma University have also held protests.

The post Resistance, revolution and resolve: How Indian students led the anti-CAA protests appeared first on SabrangIndia.

They came wearing clothes of harmony: Mumbai’s Dec 19

Fri, 20 Dec 2019 14:42:08 +0000

Till 4:30 they came in trickles, duly filling up a small area around the stage, ambling in the December afternoon sun. Many of them were activists who knew each other from other protests. Some of them were Muslims wearing the kind of clothes Modiji probably identifies them with. Slowly and surely, the event threatened to turn into yet another Mumbai protest – attended by a small group of passionate people who believe in Mark Twain’s classic adage, “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.” My heart sank in disappointment.

I am of course partly wrong. In the aftermath of Rohith Vemula’s tragic suicide, thousands had marched in Mumbai. Who can forget the sea of red when the farmers walked 300 miles to Mumbai. A ‘Not in my name’ march against mob lynching a few years had also swelled with surprise participation of common people, some of whom had gotten off BEST buses to join us. Surely the unprecedented move of religion based citizenship would bring more people out into the streets ? There had been whispers in many circles of spontaneous participation. People were saying, ‘oh yes, I plan to come’ in private conversations. So where were they ?

And then it started. A deluge of people jostling and pushing and laughing and shouting out slogans, eager to find their way inside the August Kranti Maidan. They were students, office goers, shopkeepers, members of social organisations, political leaders, actors, filmmakers, couples with kids, obviously Hindus and obviously Muslims – citizens all, who came singing against the tyranny of Hindutva. They came in waves, as if sent by the sea – young Indians who came to reclaim the idea of India itself from bigots. They had printed their own posters, painted their own signs, came up with their own slogans. They were irreverential and relaxed. It was a sight to behold – young men and women on the street taking on mighty old men who sit on their pedestals with their mass propaganda machines and nuclear bombs and pliant officers. The republic was revolting against its emperor. They clapped and whistled, gave each other a hand, managed crowds themselves and stood patiently in queues. I couldn’t believe my eyes. The organisers had been mobilising support. Surely there was anger at how the police had stormed Jamia and AMU. But this was unprecedented. What was happening?

Perhaps the ideals of democracy and secularism run deeper than we think they do. Perhaps the cliches of ‘Hindu-Muslim Bhai Bhai’ and ‘unity in diversity’ does mean something to Indians. And even if ‘secular’, the much maligned word itself means different things to different people; the idea of secularism itself is ingrained within us. I know this sounds optimistic. But I cannot help but feel this way because the overwhelming message from the people who came to protest was not just against CAA or NRC. It was a message of unity and harmony. People were marching in solidarity. Poster after poster screamed against division on religious lines, against fascism, against Hindutva. It was as if the people were speaking in one voice – do not divide us, we are one.

Seventy Seven years ago, at this very spot Mahatma Gandhi had given his famous mantra – Do or Die sparking off the Quit India movement. Ninety two years ago, Ashfaqulla Khan and Ram Prasad Bismil (and thakur Roshan Singh), Muslim and Hindu, thinkers and poets, friends and rebels had been hanged to death by the British Government in the Kakori conspiracy case. Will we be able to say that in December 2019 we created history ? That will depend on what happens next.

So what happens next ? There are no easy answers. But after yesterday’s protest, it is now over to mass leaders, philosophers and artists amongst us who will have to collect these voices in a way that will truthfully speak of the times. They (we?) will have to lead fearlessly and articulate the fundamental ideas of being an Indian. Historically, Brahminical forces have always been in conflict with free thought and this fierce Hindutva onslaught is no different. But the articulation of what it means to be an Indian has also taken many forms and found many voices over the last two thousand years. From Buddha to Kabir to Nanak to Tukaram and Basavanna; from Gandhi to Ambedkar to Bhagat Singh, the idea of who is an Indian is as old as India itself.

And now, the people have spoken. They have shown the way. They have expressed their willingness to lead the way. And if the leadership is unable to unite and match the energy of the people, unable to give voice to their emotions, it will be swept away by the tides of history.

And if it does, August Kranti Maidan may very well be rechristened December Kranti Maidan.

The post They came wearing clothes of harmony: Mumbai’s Dec 19 appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Student has to have his hand amputated following police action: AMU

Fri, 20 Dec 2019 11:51:57 +0000

Yet another young student, a Muslim is victim of police brutality following the anti-CAA and anti-NPR-NRC protests. PTI reported that doctors on Tuesday had to amputate the hand of a student of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) who suffered injuries during the clashes that erupted in the campus on Sunday. The students had been protesting against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and in solidarity with the students of Jamia Millia Islamia who were baton-charged by police in Delhi earlier that day.

The AMU student was allegedly injured when the police fired tear gas shells to disperse the protesters.

Three other students suffered serious injuries during the incident. “One of them lost a finger because of a shell explosion and another has a head injury. We referred one student to Gangaram Hospital as he was unstable here. He was probably injured by a blunt object,” said Haris Manzoor Khan, the medical superintendent at the hospital of AMU’s medical college.

The situation in the city is normal and under control, said Aligarh SSP Akash Kulhary.

On December 15, around 70 people, including students, AMU security guards and 20 policemen were injured in the campus violence, PTI news agency reported. Several students told the media that, “the police came with the intent to assault and not to disperse”.

An engineering student, who was part of the protest, said that the students were leading a protest march in the campus to Bab-e-Syed, the university main gate, on Sunday evening.

“But the police started firing tear gas directly at students. They broke the main gate, barged in and started hitting students with batons. Later, they entered the Morrison hostel, even firing a tear gas shell into a room where three students were present,” said the student, requesting anonymity as he feared being targeted by the university authorities.

Another student from a neighbouring hostel said that the students in his building were so terrified that they switched off lights, locked the doors from inside and spent the night on the terrace.

Aligarh SSP Akash Kulhary denied these claims however and catehorically stated that no security personnel entered the hostel. However, CCTV footage shows the Rapid Action Force personnel entering the Morrison hostel at 6:22 pm and pushing parked motorcycles to the ground. The police also picked up 27 persons who were released a day later – of them, only seven were university students.

The locals and university teachers had protested for their release. Furthermore, the Internet has been shut down in Aligarh since the intervening night of Sunday and Monday.

Activist Harsh Mander, who was part of a fact-finding team that visited the AMU on Tuesday, said the situation was disturbing and the police violence at the campus was worse than Jamia.

“I have never seen such levels of police brutality at a student protest. We met one student who was stripped naked and beaten brutally in police custody. There were belt marks over his body and one hand was broken. The police also used communal language with them,” said Mander, a former bureaucrat, who now works on mass violence, custodial justice and food security among other areas.

The students were also told to vacate the hostels overnight, which Mander said, caused huge trouble to them. “How do 13,000 students move in such a short time? How do they book tickets? The whole situation was very grim.”

A resident student of Women’s College said the wardens told them to vacate the hostels immediately at 11 am on Monday. “I did not know what to do. I called up my father in Kolkata who told me to leave the city immediately. A friend and I had to take a late-night train to Delhi. The next morning, I took an expensive flight to Kolkata,” said the student.

Faizul Hasan, former AMU students’ union president said some of the students were left stranded on the roads. “Despite repeated requests, the university authorities forcefully vacated the hostels. I don’t know what was the need to push the students into such a situation? And was it wise to even tell students from Kashmir and Assam to go back home?” said Hasan.

The worst part, he said, was the role of the university authorities who allowed the police to rampage in the campus and beat the students. “

Even in a meeting with the district officials, the mayor and other student leaders, Vice-Chancellor Tariq Mansoor said that if need be, he would call the police again and again in the campus,” Hasan said.

Mander, who met the university registrar Abdul Hamid, a serving IPS officer, said the latter was ‘upbeat’ about the decision to invite the police in the campus and defended it as ‘any policeman would’. Aligarh Muslim University public relations officer, Shafey Kidwai, however, said the outsiders in the protest gave it a violent turn, in the face of which the university authorities had to seek help from the police.

“We had said that about 75 per cent of them (protesters) were outsiders, who were hell-bent on creating trouble. Our stand was vindicated when it emerged that out of 27 students the police had picked up, 20 were outsiders,” said Kidwai, who is a professor of mass communication in the university.

The university also arranged and paid for the buses to ferry students to their hometowns within 350 km radius, he added. Some eight buses were arranged for Jammu as well.

Najmul Islam, the honorary secretary of AMU teachers’ association, too, condemned the police violence against students. “I don’t support acts of vandalism – most of which were done by the outsiders – but the situation could have been handled in a better manner. The police could have used water cannons to disperse the crowd. What was the need for firing a tear gas shell into a hostel room?” said Islam, a professor of biochemistry.

He, however, refrained from criticising the decision of the AMU authorities to allow police into the campus. “I am not saying whether it was right or wrong. We have asked for a judicial inquiry into the incident. It will find out the facts. But we must remain focused on our opposition to the CAA,” said Islam.

Aftab Alam, a professor of political science, said that Vice-Chancellor’s decision to allow police into the campus was “unfair”. “But when we went to express our disagreement with him, he insulted us and even indirectly threatened to suspend us,” said Alam, who is also a member of the university’s executive council.

Related:

Disproportionate and extraordinary use of force by police at AMU: Fact-finding team
Aftermath of clashes at AMU
3. Massive Protests against CAB in Aligarh

The post Student has to have his hand amputated following police action: AMU appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Dalits and Muslims come together at anti-CAA protest in Malegaon

Fri, 20 Dec 2019 04:33:58 +0000

Thursday morning saw citizens of Malegaon come together for one of the biggest protests against the new citizenship law so far. The protest call was given by Dastoor Bachao Committee (Save the Constitution Committee) and supported by the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) and the Republican Party of India (RPI).

The procession began at 10 AM from Malegaon Fort and ended three hours later at Shahidon ki Yaadgaar. This is significant as this display of Dalit-Muslim unity goes a long way in strengthening the bonds between two communities that have historically faced oppression and discrimination. The rally also attracted thousands of power-loom workers, as Malegaon is a textile hub. Thousands of students, many of them first-time protesters, also attended the rally.

All demonstrations were peaceful. The Indian Express reported that Maulana Umrain Mahfooz Rahmani, convener, Dastoor Bachao Committee and secretary of All India Muslim Personal Law Board, addressed the rally saying, “December 19 is a historic day. It is a day the British hanged two freedom fighters Ashfaqullah Khan and Ram Prasad Bismil. We are their descendants. If the need arises, we are willing to sacrifice our lives to save the country.” Rahmani also advised the “globe-trotting” Prime Minister to visit the tomb of Ramses II, the third pharaoh of Egypt to learn that power does not last forever.

VBA chief Prakash Ambedkar also attended the rally and said, “The CAA is just an eyewash. What has raised apprehensions is the NRC.” The VBA is coming together with many other like-minded organisations and plans to hold many more anti-CAA protests.

The post Dalits and Muslims come together at anti-CAA protest in Malegaon appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Controlling Dissent: Ramchandra Guha, left leaders detained for anti-CAA protests

Fri, 20 Dec 2019 03:57:07 +0000

From the North to the South, there is no state in the country that has not erupted in protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

Historian Ramachandra Guha, Swaraj India leader Yogendra Yadav and Left leaders D Raja, Sitaram Yechury, Brinda Karat and Prakash Karat are some of the prominent public figures who have been detained by the police on December 19, in various states, for protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in the country.

Ramachandra Guha was dragged by the police mid-interview as he was detained along with dozens of other protestors in Bengaluru at the Town Hall during a protest against the CAA. Section 144 of CrPC which does not allow an assembly of 5 or more persons in public, was imposed in Karnataka last evening ahead of the protests to take place today.

Ramachandra Guha told NDTV, “I have been detained by police for holding a poster of Gandhi and speaking about the constitution to the press. The police are working under directions from central government. We are protesting non-violently against a discriminatory act, in a disciplined way. Look here, everyone is protesting peacefully. Have you seen any violence?”.

Watch: Historian Ramachandra Guha, mid-interview, detained by cops https://t.co/6T9DRfCEPW pic.twitter.com/KV3S8WeCic

— NDTV Videos (@ndtvvideos) December 19, 2019

Swaraj India leader, Yogendra Yadav confirmed his detention through Twitter.

It is an honour to be detained on 19th of December, a small tribute to Ashfakulla Khan and Ramprasad Bismil.
Happy to be in the company of Dr Dharamvir Gandhi, ex-MP, Patiala pic.twitter.com/odFCzMJQNf

— Yogendra Yadav (@_YogendraYadav) December 19, 2019

For fear of detention, many people had left the protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. Yogendra Yadav tweeted asking them to return to the venue and continue with the protest and that he would join them once he was freed from detention.

Appeal to all who have escaped detention to please come to Jantar Mantar and continue the protest.

As and when we are released from detention, we shall also join everyone at Jantar Mantar.

— Yogendra Yadav (@_YogendraYadav) December 19, 2019

The Left leaders including D Raja, Sitaram Yechury, Nilotpal Basu, Brinda Karat who were detained at Mandi House, Delhi during the anti-CAA protest defying prohibitory orders, were later released. “We were detained and then taken in buses and dropped at different areas. I was dropped off near Karol Bagh while some others have been taken to Bawana,” CPI General Secretary D Raja told PTI just after he was let off.

A number of student protestors were also detained at Bhagwan Dass Road, the Deccan Herald reported the police as saying. Many student protestors were detained in the area around the Red Fort where section 144 has been imposed.

In some parts of Delhi, earlier today internet services were shut and there are reports that they are being restored gradually. In all this, protestors are quite evidently undeterred and unfazed by the political might and the brute police force and they are braving all of this to save the one holy book of the country, the Constitution.

The post Controlling Dissent: Ramchandra Guha, left leaders detained for anti-CAA protests appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Protesters Gather to Protest the CCA 2019/NRC in Mumbai

Thu, 19 Dec 2019 11:30:26 +0000

The post Protesters Gather to Protest the CCA 2019/NRC in Mumbai appeared first on SabrangIndia.

UP police detain, lathi-charge peaceful Samajwadi Party protestors

Thu, 19 Dec 2019 10:59:36 +0000

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.

pic.twitter.com/nq9z1uW0AR

— 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

pic.twitter.com/MP9o573Ai2

— 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.

Gov’t strategically shutting down Delhi metro stations to control anti-CAA protesters?

Anti-CAA protests continue amidst an uneasy calm in Assam

JMIU students asked to sign declaration that says police didn’t enter hostel

The post UP police detain, lathi-charge peaceful Samajwadi Party protestors appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Julio Ribeiro condemns “atmosphere of fear”

Thu, 19 Dec 2019 09:02:27 +0000

“I am sorry I will not be able to mark my presence in person at the August Kranti Maidan to protest against the intended dovetailing of the CAA into the NRC. Nothing has been officially spelt out clearly at present but an atmosphere of fear has been sought to be created by our top government leaders by saying that “No Indian Muslim needs to fear”.

The definition of “Indian Muslim” has not been spelt out and even after it is spelt out a process of establishing which Muslim is a Indian will entail immense trouble and anxiety to the poor and illiterate who do not have any documents to prove their birth in this country.

This inability to prove the date and place of birth will be a common experience for all who are Indians but who have not gone to school. If they are Hindus the CAA will exempt them but their Muslim brethren will face harassment.

The cost of establishing a bureaucracy to carry out this exercise and the cost of feeding lakhs of poor in detention camps till their deaths will be so humongous that I feel that it is insane to attempt the exercise.

I join thousands of Mumbaikars who condemn this insane move, born out of hate.”

The post Julio Ribeiro condemns “atmosphere of fear” appeared first on SabrangIndia.