As protests erupt in Assam over the implementation of the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA), the Guwahati police have issued a legal notice to political parties who have called for a 'Sarbatmak Hartal' in Assam.
The state is home to a large Muslim migrant population and as per the last census, of the state's total Muslim population of one crore, only about 40 lakh are native Assamese-speaking Muslims and the rest are Bangladeshi-origin, Bengali-speaking immigrants.
The All Assam Students’ Union (AASU), which led a six-year agitation demanding the identification and deportation of undocumented immigrants from 1979, has said it will fight the law in and outside court.
On Tuesday, the AASU and 30 indigenous non-political organisations burnt copies of the Act and organised protest rallies in different parts of the state, including Guwahati, Kamrup, Barpeta, Lakhimpur, Nalbari, Dibrugarh, Golaghat and Tezpur. The 16-party United Opposition Forum, Assam, (UOFA) has also announced a statewide hartal on Tuesday.
Raijor Dal president and MLA Akhil Gogoi, who had spent 567 days in jail for his alleged role in the 2019 anti-CAA agitation before a Special NIA Court cleared him of all charges, led a protest rally in Golaghat district.
The Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP), which was formed after the anti-CAA movement in the state in 2019-20, staged protests in different parts of the state.
Pointing out that the Sixth Scheduled areas and states with provisions for Inner Line Permit (ILP) in the North East have been exempted from CAA, Bhattacharjya said, "Our question is, if something is bad for some parts of NE, how can it be good for the other parts. In Assam too, in eight districts it will not be enforced."
He said that the AASU and the other indigenous will not accept the CAA and will continue to protest against it. We are already in talks with our advocates and will continue our legal fight against its implementation,' he said.
The UOFA in a statement asserted that Assam cannot accept the load of illegal foreigners as it wholeheartedly favours implementation of the Assam Accord, which says all foreigners coming to the state on or after March 25, 1971, will be detected, deleted from electoral rolls and steps would be taken to deport them.
"We will not accept the CAA at any cost as it will destroy the Assamese community. It will finish our language, literature, culture and identity," according to a UOFA statement.
Congress leader of the opposition in Assam assembly Debabrata Saikia termed the notification of CAA as "unfortunate".
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP had been saying since 2016 that all illegal foreigners will have to leave Assam, they betrayed the people of the state and brought in the CAA,' Saikia told PTI. The people of Assam will make the PM and the BJP answerable for it, he added.
The Raijor Dal president told PTI: "The process to legitimise 15-20 lakh Bangladeshi Hindus illegally living in Assam has begun. There is no other way but to come out on the street and protest against this unconstitutional act.'
A section of the people of the region were scared that if the CAA was implemented, it would endanger their identity and livelihood. "Assam's long struggle against illegal immigration has been nullified with just this one act. This act will also open the doors for 1.7 crore Hindus living in Bangladesh to cross over to Assam," Gogoi said.
Meanwhile, BJP senior spokesperson Rupam Goswami welcomed the notification of the rules of the CAA as 'this was much awaited'. "There was a misinformation campaign by the opposition that crores of Hindus from Bangladesh would enter Assam after the law was passed by Parliament, but nothing of that sort has happened', Goswami said.
AIUDF MLA Ashraful Hussain told PTI that the BJP has implemented the CA before the Lok Sabha polls as it is 'greedy for Bangladeshi Hindu votes'. "We favour Indian citizenship for anyone coming to Assam before March 25, 1971, and it should not be based on any religion or community', Hussain said.
AJP general secretary Jagadish Bhuyan told PTI that the people of Assam had protested against the CAA but the BJP ignored their emotions and notified the rules based on the strength of their numbers.
Assam's AAP president Bhaben Choudhury told PTI that this 'day will be marked as the 'black day' in Assam's history and BJP will be remembered as a traitor for imposing the communal and anti-community CAA'.
CPI(M) Assam State Secretary Suprakash Talukdar told PTI the Ministry of Home Affairs had told in Parliament that the government had no plans to introduce the law till it was sub-judice.
Guwahati police warning
In a statement issued to agitating parties, the Guwahati Police said, “Any damage to public/ private property including Railway and National Highway properties or injury to any citizen caused due to 'Sarbatmak Hartal', legal action under appropriate provisions of law including Indian Penal Code and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984 will be initiated against you and the total cost of damage to public and private properties will be recovered from you and your Organization.”
(With PTI inputs)
