Assam students' union to hold 'satyagraha' against CAA today

GUWAHATI: All Assam Students' Union (AASU) will launch a 'satyagraha' across the state on Wednesday to protest against the implementation of the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act. Anti-CAA protests by opposition parties, such as the Congress, and various organisations were held in the state for the last two days.

The AASU will hold a 'satyagraha' in all the district headquarters during the day, a leader of the students' organisation said. The students' organisation had taken out a torchlight procession in several parts of the state on Tuesday evening. An AASU delegation had gone to New Delhi on Tuesday to pursue the petition against the Act in the Supreme Court, while leader of the opposition in the Assam assembly Debabrata Saikia filed an interlocutory application in the apex court, seeking a stay on the implementation of the Act.

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Several student and non-political indigenous organisations along with opposition political parties in Assam have been opposing the CAA, claiming that it violates the provision of the 1985 Assam Accord. The accord called for "detection and deportation" of all people who entered the state from Bangladesh post March 24, 1971. With the CAA rules being issued, the central government will now start granting Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, who came to India till December 31, 2014. These include Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians.

The Congress, Raijor Dal, Assam Jatiyatabadi Parishad, the left parties and others have announced that they will continue with their protests in a peaceful and democratic manner. Trinamool Congress' state president Ripun Bora said party workers will burn copies of the Act and rules in all the district headquarters of the state on Thursday. A 12-hour 'Sarbatamak Hartal', called by the 16-party United Opposition Forum Assam (UOFA) on Tuesday, however, did not evoke much response.

CAA implementation

The Assam Police had issued notices to opposition parties, asking them to withdraw the hartal over the implementation of the CAA, and warned that "legal action" would be taken against them if they fail to follow the diktat. ''Notices were served by the Assam Police to ensure that there is no damage to public property and risk to life of the people through any forceful agitation in the state," Director General of Police G P Singh had said.

Meanwhile, security has been tightened across the state with additional deployment of police personnel, including commandos in sensitive areas, while all police stations are on an alert, a senior officer said. Patrolling has been intensified and check-posts have been set up on the major thoroughfares in almost all cities and towns of the state, where widespread anti-CAA protests were held in 2019.