As Assam continues to simmer in protests over the contentious Citizenship Amendment Bill 2019, thousands of people defying the curfew took to the Guwahati streets on December 12th, 2019 shouting slogans against Citizenship (Amendment) Bill.
The agitators continued to stage demonstrations across the state demanding the withdrawal of the bill. Army has been deployed in four areas of Assam.
Commuters faced a harrowing time as vehicles were stranded in various cities of Assam due to heavy blockade following the fresh protests. Vehicles were burnt at several places on December 11th, 2019. The houses of BJP and AGP leaders including Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal were attacked in various parts of the state.
Here are 10 points:
- The Army conducted flag march in the streets of Guwahati as the people defied the curfew in the morning hours of December 12th, 2019.
- Five columns of army – each column consisting of 70 personnel – have been deployed in Assam. Two army columns have been deployed in Guwahati.
- The commercial hub of Assam, Guwahati is under indefinite curfew as mobile internet services remained suspended in 10 districts of the state.
- Curfew was imposed in Dibrugarh on the night of December 11th, 2019 after stones were pelted at the house of Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Union minister Rameswar Teli in Upper Assam.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing the concerns of the people said that the government is committed to constitutional safeguards of the rights of the Assamese people. “The Central Government and I are totally committed to constitutionally safeguard the political, linguistic, cultural and land rights of the Assamese people as per the spirit of Clause 6.”
- Various organizations including the KMSS defying the curfew in Guwahati and came out to protest against the CAB.
- The Rajya Sabha on December 11th, 2019 approved the Bill, completing the legislative procedure for giving Indian citizenship to non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.
- Guwahati resembled a war zone similar to the days of the Assam Agitation. The sight and sound were unseen since the violent 6-year movement by students that ended with the signing of the Assam Accord in 1985.
- Flight and train services have been severely hit. The IndiGo, SpiceJet announced that all its flights to and from Dibrugarh, Guwahati are canceled today.
- In Dibrugarh, a railway station was set on fire by protestors. Another railway station in Panitola was also torched.
Photo: TIME8
