Assam: Anti-CAA Leader Arrested in Dibrugarh, Women Block Road Demanding Release

Naharkatia, February 24, 2020:

Women in Naharkatia under Dibrugarh district of Assam, expressing their resentment against the BJP Government's amendment of the Citizenship Act, are staging a road blockade from 9 am in the morning on February 24.

The protest has occurred in the wake of the arrest of a local anti-CAA leader, who has been arrested amid the raging protests in Assam. Pallab Duwarah, whose arrest has led to such a ruckus, is the President of the Pengeri Unit of the Ahom Jatiya Ganamancha Assam.

The women protesters burnt tyres and raised slogans demanding the immediate and unconditional release of Duwarah and also cried that they would never accept the CAA. They further condemned the ruling BJP party and decried the party's leaders, whom they held responsible for the imprisonment of the leader, Duwarah.

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"We have come out to the streets...yesterday, one of our boys was apprehended when he was sleeping on his bed. He was to participate in a play, and when he went home to lay down to rest, he was arrested within 15 minutes. Authorities said that he was taken to Bamunbari for interrogation, but he was taken to Dibrugarh Sadar Station", one of the protesters told the media. She further lamented that the play that Duwarah was working on will be shelved indefinitely, which is being seen as a great loss by the community.

It may be mentioned here that Citizenship Amendment Act protests, also known as the CAA and NRC protests, are ongoing protests taking place across India and overseas against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), which was enacted into law on 12 December 2019, and against proposals to enact a nationwide. The protests began in Assam, Delhi, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, and Tripura on 4 December 2019. In a few days, the protests spread across India, though the concerns of the protesters vary.

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