Samujjal: Govt has adopted suppressing tactics to silence protests against the CAA 2019

GUWAHATI: AASU (All Assam Students’ Union) adviser-in-chief Samujjal Bhattacharya has said that the State government has adopted suppressing, dividing and alluring tactics to silence the democratic protests against the CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act)-2019 in the State.

The AASU leader was speaking at the protest against the CAA staged by the artiste fraternity at the AEI (Assam Engineering Institute) playground at Chandmari here on Thursday. He said, “Our peaceful and democratic protest will continue. We’ll carry on our legal battle against the CAA at the same time. The artistes will do their own work and stage protest against the CAA till the anti-Assam piece of legislation is scrapped. I appeal to the government to stop its bid to divide the Assamese society. It has promised jobs for unemployed in the State. We welcome such a move. Our youths need jobs. I, however, want to make the government crystal clear that it should stop daydreaming that by offering jobs it will be able to silence the democratic agitation against the CAA. Our youths will continue to agitate even after getting government jobs.”

Samujjal Bhattacharya added, “The government has promised to offer Rs 50,000 to each of the 2,000 artistes of the State. I, however, feel that it’s too meagre an amount. The government will be at fault if it aspires to silence the protest of the artistes against the CAA. They’ll continue to oppose the Act till it is scrapped.”

The AASU adviser continued, “We’re holding talks with all anti-CAA organizations that took part in the agitation. We’re chalking out strategies to carry forward the protest against the CAA and the legal battle against it. Lakhs of Assamese people came out all over the world against the CAA. The government should at least show respect to them by scrapping the Act.”

The general secretary of the students’ body of Cotton University, Rahul Bordoloi, said, “We’ll continue our agitation against the CAA as well as continue our studies. We’ve changed the slogan ‘Tez dim, Tel Nideo (we’ll give blood, but not oil)’ to ‘Tezou Nideo, Telou Nideo (we won’t give blood, nor will we give oil)’.”

Rahul continued, “History is very cruel. Hitler, who wanted to win the entire world, had to perish. Who’re Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal? Former Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta did come to the recent agitation against the CAA staged by the students of Cotton University. We, however, didn’t allow him to speak a single word. This is because, we’re well aware of his betrayal to the people of Assam. Be it Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal or Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma – both should know that they have a five-year term. Do they want to escape from the camera in rest of their life after the expiry of their term?”

On the ban on Internet services in the State since December 11, Rahul said, “Maybe, the ministers had their graduation and post-graduation from the Himalayas. However, this generation isn’t like that. All over the country, admission forms are being submitted online. But the students from Assam have been deprived of submitting admission forms due to the Internet ban.”

Meanwhile, the artistes gathered at the rally said that they do not want to accept the lollipop of Rs 50,000. “The government has shown disrespect to the emotions of the artiste by extending such an offer. Let the government pay the amount to the next of kin of those killed in police firing during the agitation against the CAA. Everything will be back to normal if the government heeds to our demand for scrapping the CAA,” said one of the artistes.

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