The Opposition is trying to frame the CAA debate as a rich vs poor issue, underlining repeatedly that it is the latter who would have to stand in lines, like during the note ban, to prove their citizenship. (File Photo)
Amid protests against the amended Citizenship Act, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said his government’s schemes had never discriminated on the basis of religion and assured people that the Citizenship law and proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) had nothing to do with Muslims. In one of his longest speeches that spanned over an hour at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan, barely a km away from Old Delhi’s Daryaganj area that was hit by violence two days ago, PM Modi accused the Opposition of stoking fears and misleading people over the amended Citizenship law.
To which, the Congress reacted sharply by calling the amended law anti-Muslim and asserted the government had created an “environment of fear, uncertainty”. Modi drew flak for his speech from various quarters, including Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who accused the PM of misleading the country in his name, PTI reported.
The death toll in protest-related violence in Uttar Pradesh in three days rose to 17, with two deaths being reported from Meerut and Kanpur on Sunday.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra visited Bijnor in UP on Sunday and demanded judicial probe into the deaths of two youths, killed during violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. Gandhi met family members of the two youths earlier in the day.
Uttar Pradesh DGP OP Singh on Sunday denied permission to the delegation of Trinamool Congress leaders who were planning to visit the families of those killed in the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests in the state. Led by senior party leader Dinesh Trivedi, the delegation, including MPs Pratima Mondal, Mohammad Nadimul Haque and Abir Biswas, was expected to reach Lucknow on Sunday.
On the other hand, the BJP on Saturday announced it will run a nationwide campaign in the next 10 days to “expose” the “conspiracy” of Congress, TMC and Left parties to “spread hatred and violence” in the country over Citizenship Act. The party’s national general secretary Bhupinder Yadav said the party will go door-to-door as part of its nationwide campaign and connect with 3 crore families.
In Uttar Pradesh, the death toll rose to 15 on Saturday as one more death, that of an eight-year-old boy, was reported from Rampur district. (File Photo)
Two separate rallies supporting and opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) were held on Sunday evening in Pune and nearby Pimpri-Chinchwad township. Both the protests were peaceful.
Former Assam chief minister and senior AGP leader Prafulla Kumar Mahanta on Sunday said that India is moving in the same direction as that of "Hitler's Nazi Germany". He further added that he will continue to oppose the Citizenship (Amendment) Act on every platform despite his party supporting it in the Rajya Sabha and still being part of the BJP-led alliance in the state and at the Centre. (PTI)
Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa on Sunday charged the opposition Congress and JDS leaders with trying to mislead the minorities by making false claims and whipping up their emotions over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC). He asserted that the opposition to CAA and the proposed NRC have no base and fears on the issue were unfounded. (PTI)
A group of doctors are travelling to the sites in Delhi where protests against the amended citizenship act are taking place, in order to provide immediate medical attention to any injured protester. (PTI)
Protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act continued on Sunday with the Opposition Congress kicking off an 800-km long 'Padayatra' from Sadiya to Dhubri. (PTI)
A 30-year-old man succumbed to his injuries at a hospital on Sunday, taking the death toll in Kanpur during protests against the amended citizenship law to three. The death toll due to protest-related violence in Meerut rose to five on Sunday, taking the total number of deaths in the three days of protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act in Uttar Pradesh to 17. (PTI)
Members of the LGBT community gathered at Jantar Mantar on Sunday and expressed concern that a countrywide National Register of Citizens will lead to their "exclusion" if their family disowns them or the sexes mismatch in the documents. (PTI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday hit out at West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee over her opposition to the amended citizenship law and the proposed nationwide NRC and accused her of changing her earlier stand on infiltrators due to "vote bank" politics. (PTI)
Hundreds of people gathered at a public meeting in Musafir Khana Park in Nizamuddin Basti on Sunday to hear about the impact of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the proposed all-India NRC. Former JNU student and activist Umar Khalid explained the implications of the CAA and said that the most important fight right now was to save the country. "No one can scare the people of India. I salute all the people out on the streets," he said, addng, "How do we prove our loyalty to our own country? The Indian Muslims are not accidental Muslims, but are Indian Muslims by choice." (PTI)
Uttar Pradesh BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh on Sunday challenged Samajwadi Party leaders to visit West Bengal and see for themselves how the Trinamool Congress (TMC) runs the government in the state. "Please tell the SP to visit Bengal and see how the TMC runs the government there. How they (TMC) chop off the hands of those unfurling flags (of other parties). How they cut the throat. Tell the SP to go to Bengal and unfurl its party flag there and field a candidate against the TMS," Singh said. (PTI)
The Rampur administration is taking steps to attach properties of 25 people, identified as those vandalising public properties during violent protests against the amended citizenship law, officials said on Sunday. "We have procured CCTV footage and identified so far 25 people involved in the violence. FIRS are being registered and the process has begun to attach their properties and further actions as needed," Rampur District Majistrate Aunjaneya Singh told PTI.
Union minister Pralhad Joshi on Sunday accused the Congress of inciting violence by misleading the Muslim community over the CAA as it was 'unable' to accept the "phenomenal rise" of the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's stature. Joshi challenged the Congress to prove one negative point in the newly-enacted CAA and claimed that none of its leaders, either in the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha, could raise any substantial and logical issues over the legislation. (PTI)
Karnataka chief minister B S Yediyurappa Sunday defended the police for opening fire on CAA, NRC protesters which killed two people Thursday in Mangalore. Addressing media at his residence in Bengaluru, Yediyurappa said, “Police resorted to firing when the mob tried to storm the police station and loot the arms. When mob tried to disturb peace and indulge in arson and looting, should the police keep quiet? Are police not duty-bound to protect the innocents and property?”
The UP government blamed "outsiders" for the violence during protests against the amended Citizenship Act and said that six people from West Bengal associated with Islamic outfits PFI and SIMI have been arrested. Authorities "detained" a Trinamool Congress delegation at Lucknow airport when it was heading to meet the families of those killed in the clashes.
Students, doctors, artists gathered at Delhi Central Park in Connaught Place to protest against the amended citizenship law and the proposed all-India NRC. A newly-formed group called 'Delhiites For Constitution' organised the protest, where protesters held up placards with slogans like : 'My name is Khan and I am an Indian', 'It is so bad that even engineers are here', 'Make India Democratic Again'.
West Bengal minister and state president of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, Siddiqullah Chowdhury, Sunday said Union Home Minister Amit Shah would not be allowed to step out of the airport whenever he visits Kolkata if the Citizenship Amendment Act is not immediately withdrawn. Read here
Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Sunday led a peaceful march called the 'Samvidhan Bachao rally' against the amended citizenship law and demanded that the centre repeal the act, saying it is against the constitution and an attempt to divide people in the name of religion. Jaipur Police Commissioner Anand Srivastava said nearly 3 lakh people attended the march. (PTI)
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra visited Bijnor in UP on Sunday and met the families of two people killed in the recent violence over the amended Citizenship law. (PTI)
Amid protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday said his government's schemes had never discriminated on the basis of religion and assured the people that the Citizenship law and proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) had nothing to do with Muslims. Read here
A 31-year-old man was allegedly attacked in Bengaluru on Sunday with sharp weapons by a group of people while he was returning after participating in a demonstration in support of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. (PTI)
The BJP on Sunday said that the Congress is leaving no stone unturned to get the country 'burnt and destroyed'. BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for working relentlessly to resolve long-pending issues like Article 370, triple talaq, Ram Mandir and the grant of citizenship to persecuted minorities of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. (PTI)
The Karnataka government on Sunday announced an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh each to the families of two men killed in violent protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in Mangaluru on Dec 19. (PTI)
Bru migrants from Mizoram, who have been living in Tripura for the last 22 years, have asked the local administration to hold peace meetings and allay fears of ethnic tension, complaining that there is a sense of distrust and hostility from non-tribals in the aftermath of protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. Read more here
Former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis Sunday said that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act was not against any community or religion and alleged that some political parties are spreading falsehood about the new law to create unrest in the country. Speaking at a pro-CAA rally in Nagpur organised by a local body 'Lokadhikar Manch', he said that people were now coming out on streets in support of the amended citizenship law. (PTI)
Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Partap Singh Bajwa on Sunday urged President Ram Nath Kovind to expand the ambit of the new citizenship law to include the Ahmadiyya community, facing persecution in Pakistan, in the law as well. He argued that the government needs to undertake the humanitarian step for Ahmadiyyas, who had to flee Pakistan following persistent persecution. (PTI)
Nearly 500 members of Islamic outfits and many CPI (M) activists staged demonstrations on Sunday as protests against the Citizenship Act continued in various parts of the state. Protests were also held in Theni by members of some Islamic organisations. Activists of Campus Front of India and an Islamic outfit were booked for staging a protest against the CAA on Saturday without taking permission, police said. (PTI)
Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma on Sunday alleged "outsiders' role" in the incidents of violence reported from various districts of the state, where protests took place against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
Union minister Nitin Gadkari Sunday said that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is not against the Muslim community in India. He said the NDA government was not doing any injustice to Muslims in the country by bringing the new law.
The Manipur government has imposed a prohibitory order on Imphal West district for two months in view of the continued protests against the new citizenship law, an official said on Sunday. The prohibitory order under Section 144 CrPC was clamped on Imphal West on Saturday from 5.30 pm, said a statement issued by the office of District Magistrate Naorem Praveen. "Assembly of five or more persons which is likely to turn unlawful is prohibited," it said. The order also stated that "carrying of sticks, stones, firearms without a valid licence, weapons or objects of any description" which can be used for offensive activities is not allowed. "There is a likelihood of serious breach of peace and disturbance to public tranquility and grave danger to human lives and properties in the entire district on account of unlawful activities of some anti-social elements," the order said. (PTI)
People from the Northeast gathered at the Jantar Mantar in Delhi on Sunday, claiming that the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has been given a Hindu vs Muslim colour and the voices from the region fighting for the rights of indigenous people have been ignored. The protesters including students and civil society members are deeply hurt and distressed by the police "brutality" on them but "our protest is about our rights", they said. "We won't let others hijack our agenda. We are here to speak about our people. You cannot always ask one to take more people," Tripura's royal scion Pradiyot Deb Barman, who is also present there, said. (PTI)
"Now that the people of the country have dismissed them (Opposition), they have gone back to their old measures of divide and rule. The Citizenship Amendment Act is not applicable to any citizen of India irrespective of his religion," says PM Modi in Delhi's Ramlila Maidan
Amid the ongoing furor over the Citizenship Amendment Act, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took to Twitter and said, "Dear youth of India, Modi & Shah have destroyed your future. We can only defeat them by responding with love towards every Indian."
"Muslims are being misled. I have always ensured that documents will never come in way of development schemes and their beneficiaries. We have never asked anyone if he goes to temple or mosque when it comes to implementing our schemes," says Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi's Ramlila Maidan. Follow LIVE updates
'Some political parties are spreading rumours, they're misleading people & inciting them. I want to ask them, when we authroised the unauthrosied colonies, did we ask anyone their religion? Did we ask which political party they support? Did we ask for documents from 1970,1980?' asks PM Modi on Citizenship Amendment Act. Follow LIVE updates
Hundreds of people gathered at Bengaluru's Town Hall area and took out a rally in support of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that the Parliament House should be honoured to pass the new Citizenship Amendment Bill. PM Modi is addressing a rally in New Delhi's Ramlila Maidan. Follow LIVE updates
Mangaluru city police have named two people killed in police firing in the city on Thursday as accused in the First Information Report (FIR) on the violent protests against Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Jaleel, 49, and Nausheen, 23, were killed due to bullet injuries when police opened fire at an anti-CAA protest march in Bunder area in the heart of the city on December 19. As per the FIR, Jaleel and Nausheen were part of the violent protest against CAA, which was organised by Muslim organisations. Jaleel has been named as accused No. 3 while Nausheen has been named accused No. 8 in the FIR. A total of 77 people have been included in the FIR for their involvement in the protests. (PTI)
Amid the massive protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, Bangladesh Foreign Minister A K Abdul Momen on Sunday said that the CAA and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) are India’s “internal matters” but any “uncerainty” in the country will likely affect the neighbouring countries. “The CAB (now Citizenship Amendment Act) and the NRC (National Register of Citizens) are internal issues of India. Indian government assured us again and again that these are their domestic issues, they are doing it because of legal and other reasons,” Momen told PTI. Read more
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav criticised the ruling BJP on Sunday, alleging that the new citizenship law has been brought in to "divert the attention" from the "virtually destroyed" economy and rising unemployment. Addressing a press conference in Lucknow, Yadav said people were made to stand in line to withdraw cash during the demonetisation exercise and now they will have to stand in queue for their rights due to National Register of Citizens. "The economy is in dire straits, has been virtually destroyed, unemployment is at an all-time high. To divert the attention from these issues, CAA was enacted," he told reporters. (PTI)
Former CM H D Kumaraswamy visited Mangaluru on Sunday. He met families of the victims who died in police firing on Thursday and handed over cheques of Rs 5 lakh each to them.
Karnataka chief minister B S Yediyurappa has announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each to the families of victims who died in anti-CAA protests in Mangaluru on Thursday. According to the Karnataka CMO, the deputy commissioner of Dakshina Kannada district has been directed to provide the compensation amount immediately to the families.
The CAA and the NRC are India's "internal issues", Bangladesh Foreign Minister A K Abdul Momen has said, but voiced concern that any "uncertainty" in the country is likely to affect its neighbours. Amid raging protests over the controversial citizenship law across India, Momen hoped that the situation "cools down" and the neighbouring country "can get out of it". "The CAB (now Citizenship Amendment Act) and the NRC (National Register of Citizens) are internal issues of India. Indian government assured us again and again that these are their domestic issues, they are doing it because of legal and other reasons," Momen told PTI here when asked about the CAA and the protests against it, especially in the northeastern states. (PTI)
Scores of people took out a march in South Delhi on Sunday in support of Jamia Millia Islamia students and those facing police action for violent protest against the new citizenship law. Holding placards, people shouted 'Inquilab Zindabad' and demanded scrapping of the contentious law during the march in Alaknanda area. A group of Jamia students also participated in the protest. One of the placards read 'Hum kagaz nahi dikhayenge (We will not show documents), reject CAA, NRC', and another said, 'I stand with Jamia'. (PTI)
The curfew imposed in Karnataka's Mangaluru has been relaxed till 6 pm on Sunday. Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa confirmed that the curfew will be relaxed today and will be withdrawn on Monday. However, Section 144, which prohibits the assembling of more than 4 people in an area, will remain in force on Sunday.
Curfew was on Sunday morning lifted in Shillong, as no report of violence or arson over the amended citizenship Act was reported from any part of the city, officials said. People were seen flocking to local shops to buy essential items and Christmas goodies and gifts. Streets in the state capital were being decked out in Christmas lights and festoons since morning. Curfew was imposed on areas under Sadar and Lumdiengjri police stations in the city since December 12 as anti-citizenship law protests turned violent, leaving several injured and properties vandalised. (PTI)
Deaths: 2
A protest in Mangaluru on December 19 turned violent, with police opening fire, resulting in two deaths.
Mobile Internet services were suspended till Saturday, and curfew was clamped till Sunday midnight. In
Bengaluru, CrPC Section 144 was imposed from Thursday. However, massive protests were held. In Kalaburagi, Hubballi and Mysuru, protesters defied prohibitory orders.
The situation in West Bengal was peaceful on Sunday morning, with no incidents of violence reported from any part of the state, police said. According to sources, the police administration has increased vigil and beefed-up arrangements in trouble-torn areas to maintain law and order. The Bengal unit of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind is scheduled to take out a rally from Rani Rashmomi road in the afternoon. Police have increased stepped up security to avoid any untoward incident. The state BJP unit is also set to conduct rallies and marches in various parts of the state in support of the citizenship law. (PTI)
Uttar Pradesh DGP OP Singh on Sunday said that no permission was given to the TMC delegation who are planning to visit the protest-hit state and the families of those killed. "We have come to know that some political leaders of Trinamool Congress want to visit here (Lucknow). We will not permit them for the same as section 144 is imposed in the area and it can make the atmosphere more tense," Singh said.
Five days after police entered the Aligarh Muslim University campus, allegedly lobbying tear gas shells inside hostel rooms and dragging students out and beating them, the signs of what happened on the night of December 15 can be seen on the premises. Six injured students continue to be in hospital, while the right hand of one has had to be amputated at the wrist. Doctors fear two others may have to undergo amputation. Police have charged 26 people, including seven students, with attempt to murder, alleging that countrymade pistols were used to fire at them. On Saturday, the AMU administration appointed former chief justice V K Gupta to probe the December 15 incidents and submit a report within three months. Read more
Deaths: 5
Almost all important districts of Assam — except the three districts of Bengali-majority Barak Valley — witnessed intense protests since December 10. On December 10, 11 and 12, the protests turned violent at many places, with the epicentres being in Guwahati and Dibrugarh district.
Clashes with security personnel were reported from Guwahati and Dibrugarh.
Tear gas, bullets and water cannons were used — four persons injured in alleged firing in Guwahati on December 12 died, while the driver of a fuel tanker lost his life after a suspected mob set his truck on fire in Sonitpur district on December 13.
Deaths: 15
Protests — both big and small — were organised in almost all the districts, with Lucknow, Meerut, Sambhal, Kanpur, Firozabad, Bijnor, and Mau the most affected.
One person was killed on December 19, while 14 people were killed across the state over the subsequent days.
Public and private vehicles were burned during various protests, while several policemen were injured. In at least two districts, police stations were attacked. Around 4,000 people have been taken into preventive custody, and at least 300 people have been held, with more arrests in process. Mobile Internet restrictions are in place in several districts.
Amid protests across India against the amended Citizenship Act, a group of likeminded social activists and citizens on Sunday are organising a pro-CAA rally in Bengaluru after prohibitory orders have been lifted. The rally, “India Supports CAA”, will take place in Sir Puttana Chetty Town Hall from 10 am, organisers said. “There has been a lot of misinformation spread on social media and otherwise about the new Citizenship law while not many have come forward to discuss facts and truths regarding the same till now,” Neeraj Kamath, a social activist and one of the rally organisers told IndianExpress.com. Read more
Jamia Millia Islamia was the site of clashes between police and students over the new citizenship law on December 15. Buses and private vehicles were set ablaze, while police resorted to lathi charge and tear gas shelling, and barged into the Jamia campus where they allegedly beat up students in the library and mosque.
Two days later, thousands gathered at Seelampur area, where there were reports of stone-pelting and arson.
On December 19, police clamped down on two protests, and CrPC Section 144 was imposed. Several Metro stations were shut across the city, and mobile Internet restrictions put in place. The next day, a protest turned violent near Jama Masjid, with one car being set ablaze and stones thrown. Police used lathicharge and water cannon. Since the protests began, at least 2,000 people have been detained and several arrested for violence.
The fight against the new citizenship law is "not just the issue of Muslims" but concerns all Indians and there should be a sustained struggle against the legislation, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi has claimed. "Why should I stand in queue and tell that I am an Indian? I have been born in this land. I am a citizen (of India). All 100 crore Indians have to stand in queue (to submit proof of citizenship). This is not just the issue of Muslims but an issue concerning all Indians. I am telling 'Modi-bhakts' also. You also have to stand in queue and bring documents," the Hyderabad MP said late Saturday night. At a meeting organised by the United Muslim Action Committee, an umbrella body of various Muslim groups at Darussalam, the headquarters of AIMIM in the city, Owaisi asserted that Indian Muslims had chosen to remain India at the time of partition by rejecting "Jinnah's two-nation theory". "I am concerned about India and only India and my love is only with India. (You say) so many Islamic countries! You go there. Why are you telling me," he said. "I am Indian by choice and also by birth... If you want to fire bullets, fire. Your bullets would finish, but my love for India would not end. Our endeavour is to not hit but save the country," he said. The fight of Indian Muslims is for respect as they are being doubted even after 70 years, which, he said, is an insult. (PTI)
Last week’s police crackdown on Jamia Millia Islamia has set off domino protests across the country over the new citizenship law and a proposed nationwide NRC. The Indian Express spend time on the campus — its cafes, corridors and classrooms — to see why a century-old university with no student union and no known history of protests has ended up as the focal point of the current unrest. Read more
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday will address a rally at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan, close to Old Delhi’s Daryaganj that was hit by violence on Friday during the protest against the amended Citizenship Act. The rally has been organised to thank PM Modi for giving ownership rights to 40 lakh residents of 1731 unauthorised colonies, senior BJP leader Vijay Goel said. The National Capital Territory of Delhi (Recognition of Property Rights of Residents in Unauthorised Colonies) Bill, 2019 was passed in Parliament earlier this month. Follow LIVE updates
As Section 144 is lifted in Bengaluru, hundreds of people are expected to gather at the Town Hall and protest in favour of the Citizenship Act. On Thursday, several protesters defied the imposed section 144 and took to streets and protested against the Act. The police initially detained protesters from next to Sir Puttana Chetty Town Hall and Mysore Bank Circle in the city and sent them in buses and vans to various police stations in the area such as SJ Park, Ashok Nagar, Adugodi, and Wilson Garden. Among them were author and historian Ramachandra Guha, Congress MLA from Shivajinagar Rizwan Arshad, students from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc.), National Law School of India University (NLSIU), other prominent private colleges in the city, students representing various political organisations, including All India Democratic Students Organisation (AIDSO), National Students Union of India (Karnataka), and like-minded citizens from different age groups who arrived in small groups for the protests.