The anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) movement, which peaked with the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, is regaining traction in the northeast.
The North East Students’ Organisation (Neso), the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), and Raijor Dal issued a statement on Thursday urging people in the region to oppose the “Centre’s move to implement CAA.”
West Bengal BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari recently stated that Amit Shah suggested that once the Covid booster dose vaccination is completed, the rules for CAA, which seeks to grant citizenship to migrants from Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, and Christian communities in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, could be framed.
Previously, All Assam College Students’ Union (Aasu), Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP), and KMSS spearheaded the movement in Assam. “We are firm on our stand. We will not allow the CAA to be implemented in Assam. AJYCP is giving a call to the people of Assam and northeast for a renewed agitation against CAA.” AJYCP general secretary Palash Changmai said.
“The comments from Suvendu Adhikari that have triggered a row in the northeast were aimed at consolidating the votes of the Hindu migrants as the 2024 Lok Sabha election is nearing,” he claimed. The only remaining hurdle in the Act’s implementation is the lack of rules for CAA implementation.
Changmai stated that while the BJP had won successive elections in Assam and the northeast, implementing CAA was not a priority for the party. “BJP never went to seek votes saying it will implement CAA. We believe that the sentiments of the people of Assam on thwarting CAA remain the same since the legislation was passed in December 2019,” he said.
Following the anti-CAA movement, the Centre introduced the Inner Line Permit in Manipur in December 2019, as a safeguard against “outsiders.” As a cover-up for the CAA, the promise in Assam was to implement the report by the Centre’s high-powered committee on Clause 6 of the Assam Accord to grant constitutional, legislative, and administrative safeguards to Assamese people.
However, anti-CAA groups are resolute in their opposition to CAA.“I was in jail for a year and 7 months last time while protesting against CAA. But this time it’s a question of life and death for us. The conspiracy behind CAA is to turn the indigenous communities into a minority in Assam,” said RD president Akhil Gogoi.
