As anti-bill protest rages, Section 144 imposed around Guwahati

GUWAHATI: As protests against the ruling BJP and its Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, continued into the third day on Thursday, city police clamped prohibitory orders on the East Police district until further notice.
The areas under Section 144 of the CrPC are Dispur, Bhangagarh, Basistha, Hatigaon, Sonapur and Khetri police stations.
The police order said, “It has come to light that some specified and unspecified persons or groups of persons or organizations or associations are likely to disturb normal functioning of offices, movement of public and flow of traffic in parts of east police district in Guwahati.Therefore, in order to take preventive measures to ensure the peaceful movement of the public, smooth flow of traffic and normal functioning of offices, section 144 of the CrPC was imposed in the east police district.”
Protests took a violent turn at Palashbari in Kamrup district — a BJP office was vandalized by agitators. Assam Police said that a group of protesters gathered in front of the BJP office of Palashbari and torched party banners and posters. “There were some 200 people who were trying to vandalize the BJP office but police reached the spot immediately and disperse the mob. Three persons were arrested so far,” said Kamrup police sources. The protesters were claimed to be members of of Satya Sena, Asom, a fledgling group.
Back in the capital region of Dispur, Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) and his ally 70 other group members staged a massive protest in front of the state secretariat.
Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the secretariat, holding Assamese gamosas. KMSS adviser Akhil Gogoi said, “Our land, our culture and the entire state has been put on risk with the Bill. We hold this gamosa as a symbol of Assam and demand the state government to wake up from sleep and do the right act. Protesters stripped naked in Delhi to oppose the bill and it reflected how the people of the state are frustrated.”
He added that the Bill not only nullify the ongoing National Register of Citizens (NRC) update in the state but also violated the core spirit of the Assam Accord. “NRC has also been updated accepting March 25, 1971, as the cutoff date to detect illegal infiltrators in the state. Then why would we accept someone as an India who has entered India till 2014?” Gogoi asked.
A few kilometres from Dispur, a group of students also hit the city streets near Dighali Pukhuri area protesting against the Bill. Students across the state including Gauhati University, Tezpur University, Rangiya, Goalpara as well as the city held massive protests and fasts too. Gauhati medical college students too wore black badges while on duty on Thursday to mark their protest. Students from the region in New Delhi, too, staged protests against the bill.
Meanwhile, families of all 855 martyrs of Assam Agitation (1979-85), have announced to return the award, conferred on them by BJP-led Assam government, in protest against Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
Sadou Asom Jatiya Swahid Pariyal Somonnorokhyi Parishad (All Assam National Martyrs’ Families Coordination Council) general secretary, Chandrakanta Talukdar said, “In a meeting today, it was decided that the families of the martyrs’ of the Assam agitation will return their awards before January 31. The government which promised us of protecting from illegal infiltrators has now shown their backs and favouring the infiltrators.”