CAB: fresh protests erupt in Assam, Clash with police at several places

Dibrugarh,  By Anil Poddar

A day after total shutdown in Assam to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB), fresh protests against CAB erupted in the Assam state on Wednesday when the legislation was moved in the Rajya Sabha by Home Minister Amit Shah.

To tackle the situation, the police had to fire rubber bullets and resort to lathi charge on the protestors in Dibrugarh district, the police said.

A journalist was injured in stone pelting by a mob and the police lobbed tear gas shells to disperse them near a polytechnic institute in Dibrugarh town.

Though no organisation has called for a bandh on Wednesday, people have come out in large numbers in Jorhat, Golaghat, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, Sivasagar, Bongaigaon, Nagaon, Sonitpur and several other districts since morning.

Tyres were burnt and logs placed on the roads and rail tracks to stop movement of vehicles and trains across the state, the police said.

Police resorted to lathicharge to disperse protesters to clear the roads and rail tracks near Chaulkhowa in Dibrugarh. Rubber bullets were fired and lathicharge was carried out against agitators at Moran in the district, the police said.

The Dibrugarh district administration has called QRT  (Quick Response Team) to control the situation in various areas. As informed by the Deputy Commissioner, Dibrugarh no army has been called as yet. No curfew has been imposed in any area of the district so far.  The reporter of a local news channel  Ratul Gohain and another girl injured in the incident at Bokul. Both are undergoing treatment.

The Deputy Commissioner has requested all to refrain from spreading rumours.

In view of the massive protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in Assam, the Northeast Frontier Railway on Wednesday cancelled many trains and rescheduled a few that originate from the state.

At least 14 trains have either been cancelled, short terminated or diverted anticipating “disruptions in train movement,” NF Railway Chief Public Relations Officer Subhanan Chanda said in a statement.