Skip to main content
xYOU DESERVE INDEPENDENT, CRITICAL MEDIA. We want readers like you. Support independent critical media.

CAB: Slew of Protests Erupt, Trains Affected, Shops, Schools Closed During Assam Bandh

PTI |
Huge processions taken out in different areas of Guwahati, protesters ‘scuffle’ with security forces near the Secretariat and Assembly buildings in Guwahati.
CAB: Slew of Protests Erupt

Image for representational use only.Image Courtesy : Deccan Herald

Guwahati/New Delhi: Normal life came to a halt on Tuesday in Assam's Brahmaputra Valley due to a state-wide bandh called by two students' organisations, as well as Left and democratic parties, in protest against the Citizenship (Amendment)Bill, which has received Lok Sabha nod.

Huge processions were taken out in different areas of Guwahati, with protesters raising slogans against the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019.

Agitators had a scuffle with security forces near the Secretariat and Assembly buildings in Guwahati, when they were prevented from moving forward, police sources said.

Shops, markets and business establishments kept shutters down, while educational and financial institutions remained closed for the day, the official sources stated.

In New Delhi, too, protest demonstrations were organised by political parties, students' bodies and civil society groups over the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill on Tuesday.

While the Northeast Students' Union is staging a protest against the Bill at Delhi; Jantar Mantar. People from various walks of life and across organisations have joined the stir.

The CPI(M)'s Delhi state committee members will also hold a protest at the same venue against the contentious Bill, which was passed in the Lok Sabha on Monday. CPI(M) MPs had earlier held a protest near the Gandhi statue on the Parliament premises.

Another protest, organised by various civil society groups, is scheduled to be held in the evening against the Citizenship Bill as well as the National Register of Citizens.

Meanwhile, in Assam, the 11-hour shutdown, called by the All Assam Students' Union and the North East Students' Organisation – an apex body of student unions in the region, however, failed to evoke much impact on Bengali-dominated Barak Valley., said official sources.

In Maligaon area of the city, a government-run bus was pelted with stones and a scooter set on fire, sources said.

Train services across Assam were affected as picketers squatted on tracks, a spokesperson of the Railways said.

Some had also attempted to block the entrance to NF Railway headquarters here and Divisional Railway Manager's office at Rangia in Kamrup district, he said.

Vehicles - both private and public - stayed off the roads, the official sources said, adding that government-run Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC) buses plied between Guwahati city and the LGB airport here, with police escort.

All scheduled examinations were rescheduled by the Universities in view of the bandh.

In Dibrugarh district, bandh supporters clashed with CISF personnel. Three of them sustained injuries as they tried to prevent the workers of Oil India Ltd (OIL) to enter office at Duliajan area.

Students of Gauhati University and Cotton University in Guwahati, along with those of Assam Agriculture University in Jorhat, took to the streets, seeking immediate withdrawal of the legislation.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, piloted by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, was comfortably passed in the Lok Sabha on Monday night as the ruling BJP enjoys a clear majority in the house.

The Bill seeks to grant Indian citizenship to non- Muslim refugees, who escaped religious persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The legislation was passed by 311-80 votes in the Lower House of the Parliament.

Get the latest reports & analysis with people's perspective on Protests, movements & deep analytical videos, discussions of the current affairs in your Telegram app. Subscribe to NewsClick's Telegram channel & get Real-Time updates on stories, as they get published on our website.

Subscribe Newsclick On Telegram

Latest