Protests continue in Assam against citizenship bill

Protests against the citizenship bill continued unabated across Assam on 'Shilpi Divas' on Thursday, with people and student unions taking out processions, forming human chains, putting up black flags and burning copies of the contentious legislation.

Singer Zubeen Garg, who had demanded that Sonowal return the votes the BJP had got in the 2016 Assembly polls using the election song sung by him, pledged at a function at Tezpur to continue his protests against the bill.

A 'Black Day' was observed at Mangaldoi town, where Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal was present at a 'Shilpi Divas' function, which marks the death anniversary of cultural icon and first Assamese film-maker Jyoti Prasad Agarwala.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, which was passed in the Lok Sabha on January 8 and is pending in the Rajya Sabha, seeks to provide citizenship to non-Muslims from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) adviser Akhil Gogoi, who is in the ...