AASU announces protest programmes during visit of PM, Shah to Assam

The All Assam Students UnionAASU on Monday said that it will carry out protestprogrammes, including burning of copies of the CAA, during theproposed visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and HomeMinister Amit Shah to the state on January 23 and 24respectively.AASU president Dipanko Kumar Nath accused the primeminister and the BJP of failing to keep their promise ofsafeguarding the Assamese community from illegal migrants.Every time there is an election, the prime ministerwill come and make false statements to woo the people of thestate.

The All Assam Students' Union(AASU) on Monday said that it will carry out protestprogrammes, including burning of copies of the CAA, during theproposed visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and HomeMinister Amit Shah to the state on January 23 and 24respectively.

AASU president Dipanko Kumar Nath accused the primeminister and the BJP of failing to keep their promise ofsafeguarding the Assamese community from illegal migrants.

''Every time there is an election, the prime ministerwill come and make false statements to woo the people of thestate. The people of Assam have now understood the truthbehind this politics and will never accept the CitizenshipAmendment Act (CAA),'' Nath said.

The assembly election in Assam is due in March-Aprilthis year.

On the day of Modi's proposed visit on January 23,members of the student body have planned to protest in everydistrict tying a black cloth around their mouth, AASU generalsecretary Sankarjyoti Barua said.

During the Union home minister's visit to the statethe next day, AASU workers will observe 'Black Day'. ''Theywill fly black flags across Assam and burn copies of the CAA,''Baruah said.

The CAA says that members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist,Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have come fromPakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014facing religious persecution in those countries will not betreated as illegal immigrants but will be given Indiancitizenship.

The AASU, which is also demanding implementation ofClause Six of the Assam Accord, said that it will take outtorch rallies across the state on January 22.

Clause Six of the Assam Accord, 1985, says thatconstitutional, legislative and administrative safeguardsshall be provided to protect, preserve and promote thecultural, social, linguistic identity and heritage of theAssamese people.

The prime minister is proposed to visit Sivasagardistrict in on January 23, while Shah is slated to arrive inthe state on January 24, senior Assam minister Himanta BiswaSarma has said earlier.

Five persons, including a school student, were killedduring police firing in statewide protests in December 2019against the Citizenship Amendment Bill which, the protestorsclaimed, is against the existence, heritage and culture of theindigenous people of Assam. The Bill later became an Act.