PM Modi says CAA is not against any RELIGON

PRIME Minister Narendra Modi says “I want to unequivocally assure my fellow Indians that CAA does not affect any citizen of India of any religion. No Indian has anything to worry regarding this Act. This Act is only for those who have faced years of persecution outside and have no other place to go except India”. Meanwhile, amidst violent protest across West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee held a mega rally on Monday, December 16, in Kolkata   protesting against “unconstitutional’ amended citizenship act and NRC.It commenced near the statue of Babasaheb Ambedkar on Red Road & concluded at Jorasankho Thakurbari, the ancestral residence of   Nobel laureate Rabindra Nath Tagore. At her instance, thousands of people pledged to agitate against CAA and NRC democratically and peacefully as BJP has announced a nationwide campaign to spread awareness about the legislation asserting that it was not discriminatory against Muslims or any other community. The Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019 passed last week by Parliament is now a federal legislation after approved by President of India Ram Nath Kovind .It has scared the Muslim community despite repeated assurances given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and other ruling BJP leaders that Indian Muslims will NOT be affected. The CAA has triggered public protest in the North-East, Bengal and the national Capital, Mumbai, Hyderabad and parts of Uttar Pradesh including Lucknow with police and para army deployed at the epicenters of the violence. The ruling BJP has sought to “dispel” the Congress and a section of other Opposition’s campaign that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) was unconstitutional as it seeks to exclude Muslim and grant citizenship to persecuted minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan .It is not  discriminatory, said  BJP  spokesperson Sambit Patra a press conference at New Delhi.Meanwhile, a group of Jamia Millia Islamia students stood shirtless in the bone-chilling cold outside the university gates on Monday to protest the police action against their colleagues a day earlier. Slogans of “inquilab zindabad” rent the air as the group of around 10 students, accompanied by their fellow colleagues, took out a small march, demanding a CBI inquiry into the “police brutality”.

“Our colleagues have been beaten up badly. The policemen entered bathrooms, libraries and beat up girls. Our protest is against the goons called Delhi Police,” said a research scholar who did not want to be identified.

As a few women escorted an injured student to narrate their ordeal to the media, some people were seen asking them not to give any statements.”We were inside the university when the police barged in. About 20 policemen came from gate no 7 and 50 others came from the rear gate. We told them we were not involved in the violence. They didn’t listen. They didn’t even spare women,” Khanzala, who suffered injuries to the legs and abdomen, said.If woman, broke down as Khanzala showed his injuries to media persons. A few students and locals were seen clearing the roads to allow smooth movement of vehicles. Najma Akhtar, Vice Chancellor of Jamia Milia Muslim University has alleged Delhi Police had entered its premises unauthorizedly and extensive damages have been caused to its property. Jamia students were not involved in violent incidents as alleged by Delhi Police, she said. Ms D Roopa, Senior IPS Officer posted in Karnataka, says Police will act as the situation demands in a riotous situation, guided by Criminal procedure code & SOPs. Not as per conscience; nor as per opinions of those watching some clips on TV on arm chair, she added.INC leader Rahul Gandhi has said the CAB & NRC are weapons of mass polarisation unleashed by fascists on India. The best defence against these dirty weapons is peaceful, non violent Satyagraha. I stand in solidarity with all those protesting peacefully against the CAB & NRC.BJP says the party has asked all the MPs, including those from Rajya Sabha, to visit their constituencies and States to create awareness about the provisions of the CAA and its specific purpose for the protection of the persecuted people. The state level leadership of the party including Ministers and MLAs would also be required to update themselves and inform public on the correct and positive implications of the Act. Special awareness campaigns would be launched by the party in the North-East which has been the first to witness public protest after the bill was passed by Parliament with the apprehensions that giving citizenships to migrants across the borders and those already there in the region may impact the demography of the region and may also affect their social and cultural identity.