A call from Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh and a steady stream of visitors on Thursday boosted the spirit of the 200-odd women staging a sit-in at Park Circus Maidan to protest the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens.

Cries of azaadi rang out at regular intervals as calls and messages poured in.

Park Circus resident Rafey Siddiqui, 46, received several calls from the protesters in Delhi. “A cousin who stays in Delhi is at the protest site and was among those who called me. I passed the phone around to as many women here as I could,” Siddiqui said.

Shafika Hussain, a homemaker who spoke to the protesters in Delhi, said a woman who identified herself as Rahima Khatoon had asked her to hold on strong.

“She told me we must understand that patriotism is loving one’s country and not standing by every decision of the government. She also said they are very happy that people in Calcutta are out on the streets and protesting,” said Hussain, who has been spending nights at Park Circus Maidan.

Sitting in the last row, Neelam Ghazala, the principal of Aulad Hussain Islamic Academy in Topsia, said she had asked her teachers to run the school as it was “now or never”.

“This government must revoke the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. We refuse to be treated as aliens in our own country and that is exactly what this government is trying to do. Now, they have turned their attention to students. Attacks are being carried out as the students are standing up for what is right,” Ghazala said as a chorus of “Sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab hamare dil mein hai, dekhna ki zor kitna baazu-e-qatil mein hain (The desire for revolution is in our hearts, we shall see how much strength lies in the arms of the enemy) filled the air.

A 35-year-old woman from Lake Gardens came in the afternoon, raised slogans and also recorded the proceedings on her cellphone. “It is a weekday, so I won’t be able to stay for long. If these women can brave the rain and the cold and continue to sit here, we, too, can squeeze out time to come here,” said Tina Mukherjee, a fashion choreographer.

Tanya Yadav, a college student, dropped by to thank the women protesters. She had brought along a poster that read: “Chai baanto. Desh nahin (Distribute tea. Don’t divide the country).

Armed with thick blankets, cups of hot tea and songs of resistance on their lips, the women at the Park Circus Maidan are determined not to budge till the CAA is revoked.