Akhil Gogoi Urges Unified Resistance Against CAA Implementation in Assam

Assam Opposition MLA Akhil Gogoi has issued a call for a unified resistance against the implementation of the “unconstitutional CAA” in Assam. This appeal came just hours after Union Home Minister Amit Shah declared at an event in Delhi that the controversial citizenship law would be enforced before the Lok Sabha polls.

Gogoi conveyed his message through a 2.20-minute video posted on X platform on Saturday evening.

“I strongly urge all the regional organizations, leftist groups, and political parties of Assam to unite in opposition against the undemocratic and unconstitutional CAA in Assam, which directly undermines the regional interests of our state. Let us come together for the sake of Assam,” stated the MLA in a post accompanying the video.

Gogoi serves as the president of the regional Raijor Dal and secured victory in the 2021 Assembly elections while in jail. He had faced charges under the UAPA, including involvement in a violent protest in Chabua against the CAA in Assam. However, he was acquitted in both cases in June 2021.

Shah, on Saturday, reiterated, “The CAA is a national Act and will undoubtedly be enforced. It will be implemented before the (Lok Sabha) elections. There should be no confusion.”

He emphasized that the CAA does not revoke citizenship from anyone, as there is no such provision in the central law.

The controversial CAA expedites Indian citizenship for persecuted non-Muslims from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan who entered India without proper documentation before December 31, 2014.

The passage of the CAA in Parliament in 2019 sparked widespread protests in Assam, with a large portion of the population opposing it due to concerns about its impact on Assam’s culture, identity, and language, fearing an influx from Bangladesh.

Opponents of the CAA in the Northeast, including Assam, reject the idea of granting citizenship based on religion, regardless of whether the individual is Hindu, Muslim, or of any other religion, unlike in other parts of the country where the focus was primarily on excluding Muslims. Illegal immigration from Bangladesh remains a contentious issue in Assam.

AGP President Atul Bora and Working President Keshab Mahanta were re-elected for a third consecutive term on Sunday. They first assumed office in 2014 and both currently serve as ministers in the BJP-led state government.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, in his congratulatory message, expressed confidence that under the new leadership team of the AGP, a valued partner of the National Democratic Alliance, the party would continue to play a pivotal role in realizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of a developed Assam.