The North East Students’ Union (Neso) on Tuesday reiterated its opposition to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, claiming the “treacherous” law will encourage more infiltration from Bangladesh into the Northeast.

“This Act is treacherous towards the indigenous people of the Northeast. Instead of making laws to protect its citizens, the Centre is bringing a law to facilitate illegal migration and putting at risk its own people from external aggression. It will encourage more infiltration from Bangladesh, thereby threatening the language, culture and the very identity of the microscopic indigenous communities of the Northeast,” said Neso chairman Samuel B. Jyrwa.

The news conference was organised in New Delhi on Tuesday under the joint banner of All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) and Neso, though the former is one of the latter’s eight constituent organisations. AASU and Neso also issued separate releases.

Asked about it, Neso adviser and AASU chief adviser Samujjal K. Bhattacharjya said, “Neso covers the seven states but Assam is the affected one. That is why we decided to hold the news meet like that.”

Besides Bhattacharjya, the news meet was addressed by AASU president Dipanka Kumar Nath, its general secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi, Jyrwa and Neso general secretary Sinam Prakash Singh.

Neso gave a detailed account on estimates given out by the Centre and its agencies from time to time on the presence of infiltrators in the Northeast to establish its apprehension about the “threat” faced by the “microscopic” indigenous communities.

NESO said the largescale infiltration from Bangladesh resulted in the indigenous people of Tripura being reduced to a minority. It said indigenous people in 11 districts of Assam have also become a minority because of infiltration.

Asked why the ILP and Sixth Schedule states were protesting now that the government had kept them out of the Act’s purview, Jyrwa said: “We are all protesting in solidarity because CAA is against the interests of all indigenous people, it is communal and against the Constitution. It is a ploy of the government of India to divide and rule.’’

Asked how he would respond to the BJP billing protests “anti-national’’, Bhattacharjya said: “Being pro-CAA is anti-national.’’

“We won’t stay like second-class citizens under illegal Bangladeshis. Don’t treat us like second-class citizens. There is a India beyond Calcutta. We are against illegal foreigners, Hindus or Muslims. We have taken their burden till 1971. We want the bill scrapped. Please save the Northeast, save Assam to save India. We want to tell Modi we will not accept, we will not tolerate CAA. We will continue with our peaceful protests till the law is scrapped,” he added.

Bhattacharjya also went after chief minister and former AASU colleague Sarbananda Sonowal for allegedly betraying the people of the state. “He wants to know why he has been isolated? He has isolated himself by turning protector of illegal Bangladeshis. He has betrayed the Assamese people. We want to make one thing clear, we are neither anti-Hindu nor anti-Muslim. We are also not anti-Bengali. We are anti-illegal Bangladeshis,” he said.

The AASU also played a video clip about the peaceful protests in the state. The clip ended with shouts for help when security forces allegedly opened fire in Guwahati on December 12. “There was no power. The streets were dark when the firing took place. A class X student died,” Bhattacharjya alleged.

Underscoring the fact that educational institutions are functioning while the protests continue, Bhattacharjya said they will not disrupt the Khelo India Youth Games — scheduled to begin in Guwahati on Thursday — but would protest if Prime Minister Narendra Modi accepted chief minister Sarabananda Sonowal’s invitation to inaugurate the event.