Bir Lachit Sena leader Shrinkhal Chaliha on Sunday reiterated his pledge to continue the fight against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, after he was released from Barpeta jail in the morning.

Chaliha was arrested on December 23 last year by the CID for allegedly making provocative statements while protesting against CAA. After six days in police remand, he was sent to judicial custody on December 30.

The police, however, shifted Chaliha to Barpeta jail instead of keeping him with arrested Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) leader Akhil Gogoi in Guwahati central jail.

“The battle of Saraighat continues. Like our brave forefathers who defeated the Mughals, people of Assam will win this battle too. Our fight to protect our land, language, culture and identity will continue in a democratic way. CAA will impact our motherland, language and the entire community. If necessary, a new regional political front can be floated for the sake of the indigenous people. The people of Assam will decide,” Chaliha said after his release. He thanked the people for supporting him.

He said people of the state won’t bow down to the “misrule” of the government.

“People of Assam have set an example of resistance and democratic movement in the country and our democratic and peaceful protest against CAA will go on till the law is scrapped and the constitutional safety of the indigenous people is achieved,” he added.

Though Chaliha was slapped with charges like waging war against the state, Gauhati High Court, while granting him bail on Friday, said: “Though there were allegations against the petitioner of attending various meetings and giving lectures in various media in connection with the ongoing movement, mere taking part in the democratic movement and expressing views by giving speeches cannot be considered as waging a war against the state. One must understand the difference between democratic movement and expression of one’s view and waging war against the state. Participation in the democratic movement cannot be equated with the offence of waging war, which has its own connotation. One must also not lose the sight of the fact, that democratic movement and right to dissent is an important facet of the right of expression guaranteed by the Constitution.”

However, the court prohibited Chaliha from making any offensive statements and leaving the city without permission.

The young leader’s father, Pranabjit Chaliha, was a prominent figure during the Assam Movement, while his uncle Kirip Chaliha is a former Congress MP. One of his great-granduncles was Bimala Prasad Chaliha, a former chief minister. Another great-granduncle, Kuladhar Chaliha, was the Assembly Speaker. His granduncle Paragdhar Chaliha was also part of the Assam Movement and an MP.