CAA: Protests a must

The All Assam Students' Union (AASU) has rightfully renewed the democratic agitation to register its protests and opposition against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act, popularly referred to as the CAA. The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, which was passed by Parliament on December 11, 2019, has provided that any person belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian community from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan, who entered into India on or before December 31, 2014, shall not be treated as an illegal migrant. There is no denying the fact that the Act, as amended, not only goes directly against the provisions of the Assam Accord (according to which all persons who had come from erstwhile East Pakistan and present-day Bangladesh after March 24, 1971 would be considered as illegal Bangladeshis, irrespective of their religious faith). More importantly, while Assam has been relentlessly fighting for protection of her indigenous communities from the onslaught of migrants since Sylhet district of Erstwhile Bengal was first clubbed with it by the colonial powers after the Treaty of Yandaboo, the Citizenship (Amendment) Act has only legitimised the migrants. There is no second opinion on the fact that the growing numbers of the migrants, irrespective of their religious faith, is a direct threat to the indigenous people of Assam, because all the migrants speak the same language. It is a matter of grave concern that the Governments – both at Dispur and in Delhi – have failed to (or pretended not to) understand the genuine grievance and fear of the Assamese and other indigenous communities of the state. The AASU has every right as well as responsibility of carrying on the anti-CAA movement in a democratic manner, and it is definitely the best time to relaunch the movement when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah are visiting Assam. Narendra Modi, had during his Lok Sabha election campaign of 2014, boldly stated that Bangladeshis "better be prepared with their bags packed" after May 16, 2014, when his BJP-led alliance had fixed the date to assume office on being elected. Modi, who had made this announcement at an election rally in Srirampur in West Bengal on April 28, 2014, had also accused the Congress of having given the red carpet welcome to the Bangladeshi immigrants just for votes. While the Citizenship (Amendment) Act had legitimised one section of the Bangladeshi infiltrators in India – and Assam, it has also left no much difference between the stand of the Congress and the BJP as far as infiltration is concerned. Only apparent difference probably is that is left is that while the BJP is in favour of the Hindu infiltrators, the Congress is in favour of the Muslim infiltrators. It is very unfortunate that the BJP, and for that matter all those who have supported the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, have failed to read and understand the basic demands of Assam during the Partition of India, when the colonial rulers had – as a parting shot – sought to club Assam with Bengal, and as an extension to East Pakistan proposed by the Muslim League and its supremo Md Ali Jinnah. One must read and enlighten oneself on the bold stand and the untiring struggle of Lokapriya Gopinath Bardoloi during the 1930s and 1940s, when there was an all-out attempt by one section to club Assam with Bengal, and by another section to merge Assam with East Pakistan. Though Bardoloi and his team did succeed in saving Assam from being merged with East Pakistan and Bengal particularly because of the solid backing and blessings of none other than Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel, any and every attempt to push the Assamese and other indigenous communities of Assam back into the situation which was sought to be created by the conspirators of Bengal – irrespective of which religion they subscribed to – also definitely tantamount to grossly disrespecting the ideals and stands of the Father of the Nation as well as the Iron Man of India. And, till the day the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is not scrapped, there is practically no difference between the Congress and BJP for the Assamese and other indigenous communities who have been struggling to protect/safeguard their identity, land and culture – jaati-mati-bheti.