Citizenship Amendment Act: Uttar Pradesh remains tense

New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh remained tense amid violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act in the state. The protests have killed more than 15 people so far across the state.

Clashes broke out in several parts of the state including Meerut, Kanpur, Rampur, Lucknow and Aligarh even as section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), which bars assembly of more than four people in a place, is in force and internet is suspended.

Akhilesh Yadav, chief of Samajwadi Party and former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of worsening the atmosphere in the state. He said the Act was brought in to divert people’s attention from real issues, including the state of the economy.

On Saturday, chief minister Yogi Adityanath had said the amended Act guarantees security to each citizen.

“879 people have been arrested and preventive action was taken against 5,000 people across the state. 135 criminal cases have been registered so far and 288 police personnel have received injuries. 15 casualties have been reported,” Uttar Pradesh DGP OP Singh told ANI.

On Sunday, a march was carried out in Delhi to support the students of Jamia Millia Islamia. The national capital saw an arson incident on Friday after protests in Daryaganj turned violent. Security has been increased in Delhi as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to hold a public meeting in Ramlila Maidan to launch the BJP’s campaign for the upcoming Delhi assembly elections.

According to Press Trust of India, officials say curfew was lifted in Shillong as no violence over the amended citizenship law was reported from any part of the city. The situation in West Bengal also continues to be peaceful even as protest marches continue to be taken out in Kolkata. Protests continue to take place in other parts of the country, including Hyderabad and Chandigarh.