Anti-CAA protests return to northeast

The anti-CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) agitations returned to the northeastern region after two years with the North East Students' Organisations (NESO) staging protests across the capitals of northeastern states on Wednesday in support of various demands including scrapping of the contentious law.

In Assam, a protest meeting was held by the All Assam Students Union (AASU) against the CAA.

The AASU is one of the constituents of the NESO, an apex students' body of eight organisations in the northeastern region. NESO Advisor and AASU leader Samujjal Bhattacharya said that NESO staged peaceful protests at all the state capitals.

The protest is also pertaining to issues related to floods, influx of migrants, complete scrapping of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, providing constitutional safeguards to the indigenous communities, the imposition of Inner Line Permit (ILP) to protect the indigenous people in all northeastern states and implementation of the Clause 6 of the Assam Accord, 1985.

The anti CAA protests had first started in Assam, parts of West Bengal and other northeastern states in 2019 and continued for some time till 2020 before the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.

At least five persons were killed in the protests against the CAA in Assam, which also witnessed large-scale violence and imposition of curfew for several days.

Besides the NESO, AASU, various tribal organisations, political parties including Congress and Left parties have strongly opposed the CAA.

The CAA seeks to grant Indian citizenship to non-Muslims minorities -- Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, who have migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014, after facing faith-based persecution.