| GUWAHATI: The All Assam Students’ Union has claimed that the region-wide opposition to the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016 in Assam has the support of 11 national parties, including Janata Dal (United).
An AASU delegation comprising adviser, Samujjal Bhattacharya, president, Dipanka Nath and general secretary, Lurinjyoti Gogoi met Bihar chief minister and JDU national chairman, Nitish Kumar on Wednesday and apprised him of the situation in the state and the implications of the proposed legislation. “We met the JDU leader for about two hours and submitted all relevant documents, including a 16-point memorandum in support of our claim against the Bill. He has understood the seriousness of the situation and assured us to write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about it. He said he was opposed to the idea of citizenship being given on the basis of religion as it contradicted the secular character of our country,” AASU president, Dipanka Nath told reporters here on Thursday. The AASU delegation also discussed the burning problems of Assam, including influx and the need to seal the India- Bangladesh border. A JDU legislator, who is a member of the joint parliamentary committee (JPC), was also present at the union’s meeting with the Bihar chief minister. “We made our stand clear before him that under no circumstances could the Centre impose the burden of lakhs of Bangladeshi Hindus on Assam and that such a legislation was a threat to the existence, language and culture of the indigeneous communities of Assam. In this regard we have already met the representatives of 11 national parties and their leadership has assured to extend their support to our cause,” Nath said. AASU and 28 indigenous organisations of Assam have resolved to take the anti-Citizenship Bill movement to a larger scale both within the region and outside, while simultaneously garnering support from national and regional parties. “We reiterate that along with sustaining this agitation at the state and Northeast level, we will take the movement in phases at the national level for which we are currently engaging with national parties and making them understand the ramifications of such a Bill,” AASU general secretary, Lurinjyoti Gogoi said.
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