Political parties calling bandhs could lose registrations: Himanta

The chief minister said those opposing the CAA should place their views before the Supreme Court as it is the only authority that can scrap the law now.

Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said political parties could lose their registrations if they called bandhs in violation of court orders.

He said any opposition to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) of 2019 should be taken to the Supreme Court and protesting on the streets would serve no purpose as the law had already been enacted.

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Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a programme at Batadrava, Sarma said, “Everyone has a right to protest, but if a political party disobeys court order, its registration may be cancelled.” He maintained that while it is permissible for student organisations to call for a bandh, political parties cannot do so in the state due to a Gauhati High Court order prohibiting bandhs.

“If any political party violates the high court order, we will go to the Election Commission with it,” he added, referring to opposition political parties announcing intensified agitations if the CAA is implemented.

The chief minister said those opposing the CAA should place their views before the Supreme Court as it is the only authority that can scrap the law now.

“If more intense agitation was to take place, it should have been done before the law was passed. Now it is only a matter of notifying the rules, which the government is bound to do. Even if some agitation happens now, it is my guarantee that no new person will join it,” Sarma added.

Opposition political parties, students and other organisations have announced of intensified protests against the CAA, which seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis entering India on or before December 31, 2014 from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after five years of residence here.

The 16-party United Opposition Forum, Assam, (UOFA) had staged a sit-in demonstration in Kaliabor on Friday when Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived on a two-day visit to the state.

The forum had said a state-wide bandh will be called the very next day the contentious act comes into force, followed by ‘gherao’ of the Janata Bhawan (the secretariat).

It had also submitted a memorandum to President Droupadi Murmu, saying they would undertake a “democratic mass movement” across the state if the CAA was not repealed.

The state had witnessed massive protests after the Rajya Sabha passed the CAA on December 11, 2019, with agitators engaging in pitched battles with security forces, forcing the administration to impose curfew in several towns and cities.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah had earlier said CAA rules would be notified and implemented before the Lok Sabha polls.