Guwahati: Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Assam on a two-day visit on Friday, various student bodies and political parties intensified their protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) of 2019.
Members of the United Opposition Forum, Assam (UOFA), comprising 16 parties, staged a sit-in demonstration at Kaliabor Tiniali, approximately 50km from Kohora, where the PM is staying overnight.
In the evening, the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) and 30 other organisations lit lamps in memory of five persons who lost their lives during the anti-CAA movement in the state in 2019.
Modi arrived in the state on Friday afternoon and will spend the night at the police guest house near Central Kohora Range in Kaziranga National Park.
On Saturday morning, he is scheduled to undertake a safari in the park and inaugurate and lay the foundation for projects worth Rs 18,000 crore for the state.
UOFA chief spokesperson and Raijor Dal chief Akhil Gogoi said the protest was initially planned for Saturday, but was held a day earlier at the request of Ahom community organisations.
“The prime minister will be unveiling a statue of Ahom general Lachit Borphukan. As such, the community requested us to change the date of the protest. Hence, we organised it a day earlier,” Gogoi told reporters at the demonstration site.
He maintained that the CAA is a threat to the identity of the Assamese people, and they will continue to oppose it.
Kaliabor MP Gaurav Gogoi said if opposition bloc INDIA is voted to power in the forthcoming general elections, the first cabinet meeting will repeal the contentious law.
Gogoi said he had not gone to receive the PM at Panbari helipad even though protocol is for the local MP to be present. Gogoi said he was against welcoming someone who is “working against the interests of the Assamese community”.
State Congress president and UOFA chief Bhupen Kumar Borah emphasised that opposition to the CAA in the state cannot be stifled, expressing disappointment over the lack of response from the Prime Minister’s Office to their request for an appointment.
Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) president and UOFA general secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi said the protest against the CAA would be further intensified.
The UOFA resolved to urge all groups opposing the CAA to come together to press for their demand.
The opposition parties’ forum had announced that a statewide bandh would be called the day the contentious Act comes into force, followed by a ‘gherao’ of the Janata Bhawan (the secretariat).
The state witnessed massive protests after the Rajya Sabha passed the CAA on December 11, 2019, leading to clashes between agitators and security forces and the imposition of curfew in several towns and cities.
These organisations had held motorcycle rallies across the state on Thursday against the contentious Act.
The CAA seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis entering India on or before December 31, 2014 from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after five years of residence here.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah had earlier said CAA rules would be notified and implemented before the Lok Sabha polls.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma urged those opposing the CAA to approach the Supreme Court for redressal of their grievances rather than resorting to agitations.
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