Citizenship bill agitators raise black flags\, protest nude during Modi\'s Assam visit

Citizenship bill agitators raise black flags, protest nude during Modi's Assam visit

Press Trust of India  |  Guwahati 

Modi's second day in saw

nude protests, a bandh, raising of black flags and burning of effigies by agitators over the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill.

The KMSS activists had arrived in cars and stripped naked before holding the protests.

The Tai Ahom Yuba Parishad had called a 12-hour bandh in the state to protest against the prime minister's visit and its impact was felt in the upper districts of Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Sibsagar, Lakhimpur and Jorhat with vehicles remaining off the road and shops and business establishments closed.

The bandh was supported by the KMSS along with 70 other organisations jointly protesting against the bill.

The All Students' Union (AASU) claimed that police resorted to mild lathi-charge to disperse its activists who had assembled with black flags and black balloons at the Amingaon-Hajo Road, about 10 km from Modi's rally at Changsari.

The protesters burnt effigies of the and released black balloons into the air in different districts across the state.

Modi was shown black flags in at least two places here on Saturday for the second consecutive day while on his way to the airport from the Raj Bhawan here.

Protesters, belonging to the Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chhatra Parishad (AJYCP), showed black flags to Modi at Machkhowa area.

Minutes later, a group of students of the too waved black flags at Modi in the Jalukbari area.

Both the groups were detained as soon as they lodged their protest, police said.

A few students of the alleged that they were manhandled by police.

On Friday evening, the was shown black flags in at least four different locations as soon as he landed in Guwahati and was travelling from the airport to the Raj Bhawan to spend the night.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis from Bangladesh, and after six years of residence in even if they do not possess any document.

The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha during the Winter Session on January 8 and has been awaiting Rajya Sabha nod.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First Published: Sat, February 09 2019. 16:35 IST