The first anniversary of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act was observed as a “black day” by leading student organisations of the Northeast on Friday and from all possible indications, the protest to get the legislation scrapped will only grow in the near future.
The North East Students’ Organisation (Neso), comprising the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU), All Assam Students’ Union (AASU), Naga Students’ Federation (NSF), Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP), Twipra Students’ Federation (TSF), All Manipur Students’ Union (AMSU), Garo Students’ Union (GSU) and All Arunachal Pradesh Students’ Union (AAPSU), observed a “black day” by displaying black flags and banners in important public places seeking the repeal of the law passed by Parliament on December 11 last year despite widespread protests in the region.
A Neso banner against CAA in Shillong on Friday Telegraph picture
In Assam, five persons died at the peak of the anti-CAA movement on December 12 last year.
The Neso said the protest is a message to the Centre that the region remains opposed to the CAA and will keep on fighting for the scrapping of the law, seen by many as a threat to the identity and culture of the people of the Northeast.
The law makes it easier for non-Muslims from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan to secure Indian citizenship.
The Lok Sabha passed the Citizenship Amendment Bill on December 9 last year while the Rajya Sabha passed it on December 11 despite widespread protests in the region. The protest, spearheaded by AASU, Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP), Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), citizen groups and the Opposition parties in Assam slowed down because of the examinations and the coronavirus-induced lockdown.
AAPSU members protesting in Itanagar on Friday Telegraph picture
However, Friday’s protest will see the return of sustained public protests in the region, especially in poll-bound Assam, political observers said.
Neso adviser and AASU chief adviser Samujjal Bhattacharjya told The Telegraph that Friday’s protest shows the Northeast was, is and will remain united against the CAA despite the Centre’s alleged efforts to divide the region by exempting areas falling under the Sixth Schedule and the inner-line permit, a travel document that regulates the entry and stay of outsiders, including those from other states.
Bhattacharjya said, “The CAA has to go because the Northeast is not a dumping ground for illegal Bangladeshis. We will continue our fight. On Saturday, we will be holding protests in all district headquarters. In Guwahati, we will hold a meeting in memory of the five CAA martyrs. They were innocent people and till now no inquiry has been instituted into their death by an inhumane government. We reiterate our demand for a probe by a sitting high court judge into the deaths.”
The day also saw KMSS members and supporters stage a protest rally in Sivasagar, seeking the scrapping of the CAA and the immediate release of its chief adviser Akhil Gogoi, who was arrested on December 12 last year at the peak of the anti-CAA protests. Akhil said on Friday that the agitation against the CAA has slowed down, which should not happen if the Assamese society has to be protected.
Mizo Zirlai Pawl members participating in the Neso black day programme in Mizoram on Friday Telegraph picture
A leading anti-CAA protester, Srinkhal Chaliha, said at the protest meeting that Akhil will be contesting in the Assembly polls from Sivasagar and they would ensure his victory by over a lakh votes.
Like the AASU, the Coordination Committee Against Citizenship Amendment Act will felicitate the families of the five protest victims so that the people don’t forget their sacrifices at a public meeting to renew its pledge to continue the fight against the CAA which started in 2016, to uphold the secular character of the Constitution. The committee will also seek a thorough probe into the circumstances leading to their deaths.
Popular singer-composer Zubeen Garg, one of the leading lights of the anti-CAA movement, also remembered the martyrs in a Facebook post which had all their names — Dipanjal Das, Sam Stafford, Ishwar Nayak, Abdul Alim and Dwijendra Panging — under the headlines “I remember” followed by “WE have not forgotten”, “No CAA” and “Assam Remembers”. By evening, the post had notched up over 18,000 likes and 1,400 comments. Zubeen also urged all users to post a photo having the names of the martyrs.
A family member of Stafford, a Class X student, told reporters they are still awaiting justice.
In fact, the special investigation team constituted in December last year by the state government to probe the violence that rocked the state is yet to submit its chargesheet because it was awaiting a few technical reports like forensic and analysis of video footage. Two of the original members were transferred after a couple of months.
The delay, many say, is perplexing because senior minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had categorically accused the Popular Front of India, “urban Naxals” and a section of Congress workers of being involved in the violence, at least in front of Janata Bhawan, the seat of power in Assam, during the anti-CAA protests in the city.
“Roughly 50 per cent of those involved in the Guwahati violence cases were from lower Assam’s Barpeta, Kamrup, Goalpara and Nalbari districts,” Sarma had said.
Sources said the demand for a thorough probe or making the reports of the inquiry held so far will only increase in the coming days.