Black flags and posters have become the symbol of protest for anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Bill groups in Assam.
Over the past few days, the BJP and the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) leaders have either faced black flags in public places or posters with acerbic and sarcastic remarks pasted on the boundary walls or gates of their residences.
On Sunday, posters were seen outside the residence of cabinet minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s residence at Noonmati here with the words, “Power is my real goal. I can tolerate people’s rebuke for it. I can be sold off.”
The posters at Sarma’s residence came a day after a similar one was found on the gate of chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal’s residence in Upper Assam’s Dibrugarh district. The poster said, “Please do not trust me. I have relegated to a kholnayak (villain) from jatiya nayak (national hero) for the sake of my party and post.”
Cotton University students pasted “missing” posters of AGP MP Birendra Prasad Baishya, who was once a vocal critic of the CAB, but now has allegedly been silent on the issue. The posters, which have Baishya’s image, said, “If anyone has any information about Baishya kindly contact the students of Cotton University.”
Besides politicians, such posters were found pasted on gates of the residences of chief minister’s press adviser Hrishikesh Goswami and legal adviser Santanu Bharali a few days ago.
Over the past few days, anti-bill protesters have also greeted BJP and AGP leaders with black flags along with a flurry of uncomfortable questions and slogans during their visits.
On Saturday, AGP leader and cabinet minister Phani Bhushan Choudhury stopped midway during his speech at a meeting and scurried off to his vehicle by taking a shortcut through a jungle at Bongaigaon when anti-bill protesters, armed with black flags, came towards him. Last year, an emotional Choudhury was crying when he returned to his constituency after resigning from the ministry in protest against the bill.
Though state BJP president Ranjeet Kumar Dass has claimed that intensity of protests had come down in the state, more and more organisations and students from different universities are hitting the streets against the bill.
All Assam Students’ Union members on Sunday gheraoed the residences of Dhemaji BJP legislator Ranoj Pegu, Dhemaji MP Pradan Baruah and AGP president Atul Bora.
Bora also faced a protest at the party office at Golaghat on Sunday, where protesters burnt an effigy of the minister.
The state government has tightened security at the AGP head-office at Ambari here, apprehending attack from protesters.
Additional reporting by Sanjoy Hazarika in Bokakhat