354 held as protests continue in West Bengal
Protests against the amended Citizenship Act continued in parts of West Bengal for the fifth consecutive day today even as police arrested 354 people in connection with the arson and violence.
Agitators raised slogans against the new Citizenship Act at Basirhat in North 24 Parganas district this morning, reports our New Delhi correspondent.
Movement of trains within West Bengal and between the state and Assam and Tripura was badly hit by last four days of violence targeting trains and rail stations. Several trains to northern part of West Bengal were either cancelled or delayed, our correspondent reports quoting officials.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is scheduled to hit the streets for the second day today by leading a march from suburban Jadavpur to upmarket Bhawanipore in south Kolkata area against the citizenship law.
Mamata led a massive march from Red Road to Jorasanko Thakur Bari, the ancestral house of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore yesterday and urged the agitators to not indulge in vandalism and arson.
The chief minister had declared on Monday that the Amended Citizenship Act and the National Register of Citizensh could be enforced in the state only over her "dead body".
Road and rail blockades were witnessed in the state on Monday also as violent protests over the contentious Citizenship Act refused to die down, despite warning by state authorities and appeal from the chief minister.
Highways and railway lines were blocked and incidents of arson and loot reported from several places in the state yesterday.
On the other hand, the situation in the north eastern states, where the anti-citizenship law violence had broken out first last week, was fast returning to normal.
Curfew was relaxed for 13 hours in Shillong today even as the ban on internet services will remain in force, officials said adding no report of violence was reported since Monday.
The curfew was relaxed from 6 am from areas under violence-hit Lumdiengjri police station and Sadar police station limits, a statement from the East Khasi Hills district administration said.
Banks, main markets were open and vehicles were plying on the streets. Schools have announced their annual results following which winter vacations have begun in most of the educational institutions.
Mobile internet remained shut for another 48 hours beginning from 5 pm on Monday even as mobile messaging services were relaxed to 5 messages per number that includes OTP services, a senior Home department official said.
The Confederation of Meghalaya Social Organisation (COMSO), an umbrella organization of social organizations and pressure groups, held peaceful protests by organizing sit-in demonstration against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
"We will continue to protest against the CAA, and we want 100 per cent exemption for Meghalaya from the purview of this Act," COMSO chairman R Kharjahrin said.
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