Students of Assam varsities and colleges boycott classes over Citizenship Bill, ban entry of BJP members into campus

Guwahati: Students of two state-run universities and over 15 colleges across Assam decided on Wednesday to boycott their classes indefinitely to protest against the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019, in the Lok Sabha. The Dibrugarh University students’ union also banned the entry of any member of the ruling BJP into the campus. [caption id=“attachment_5865921” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] SFI activist take out mock funeral during a protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, in Guwahati. PTI[/caption] The student bodies at Tezpur University, Jorhat Medical College, Pub Kamrup College, JB College, DCB College and others have held protests in their campuses, although no decision to boycott classes has been taken. “We have appealed to all our affiliating unions to start protesting in their campuses against the Bill. We have asked our boys to mobilise as many students as they can,” All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) central committee member Uddipjyoti Gogoi told PTI. In a statement, Cotton University Students’ Union general secretary Pranjal Kalita said the student community was against the Centre’s move to pass the Bill, which would eventually “destroy” the Assamese community. “In protest against the Bill, we have started an indefinite class boycott from today. We are also talking to all college and university unions across Assam to mobilise support for the agitation,” he added. In a joint statement, Dibrugarh University Post-Graduate Students’ Union president Mridul Gogoi and general secretary Rahul Chetry said they were concerned at the “dangerous conspiracy to finish the unity and existence” of the Assamese society. “We, the students of the Dibrugarh University and hundreds of other affiliating colleges, have decided to boycott our classes indefinitely in protest of the Bill. “Also, we announce a complete ban on the entry of the agents of the communal party into the university campus. We are ready to face the consequences for this. We appeal all to come out and join the movement,” they said. Tezpur University Students’ Council president Tirtharaj Gohain and general secretary Maitreya Rajan Mahanta said, “We have been protesting against this destructive bill since the beginning.” So far, the students’ unions of Pub Kamrup College, Margherita College, Dibru College, Lahowal College, Tengakhat College, Gorgaon College, CKB College, Jorhat College, Dhakuakhana College, Chabua College, Madhabdeb College, Bokakhat College, Moran College, Tinsukia College and MNC College have announced their decision to boycott the classes. The Lok Sabha had on Tuesday passed the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, which seeks to provide Indian citizenship to non-Muslims from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, amid protests in the northeastern states and the Opposition parties terming the proposed law “divisive” and “flawed”. A number of students’ organisation and political parties had observed an 11-hour Northeast bandh on Tuesday to protest against the Bill.