While scores of people have joined the anti-CAA protests from across the country, it has been amply clear that most of them have no idea about the act. They are the victims of a massive disinformation campaign spread out by the opposition and in some cases are protesting because their favourite Bollywood celebrity took a stand against the Citizenship Amendment Act.
The BJP to counter the misinformation campaign has now planned to organise 100 rallies and 250 press meets to counter the anti-CAA narrative.
BJP has decided to launch a massive outreach programme which is aimed to reach out to over three crore families to allay the concerns over the CAA. The party plans to launch the massive outreach programme in the span of the next 10 days. BJP general secretary Bhupender Yadav was quoted:
“The BJP will reach out to over three crore families. We will organise press conferences at over 250 places in the next 10 days. In addition, over 100 rallies will be held to clear the air over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and to bust the myth created by the opposition. The BJP will take along the refugees, who come to India due to atrocities in their countries in its rallies. Our party is of the view that all communities – Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Parsi, Sikha and others – are Indian citizens and have the right to live with dignity.”
This is a crucial step to counter the narrative spread by the opposition. The Ministry of Home Affairs on its part is also clearing the air over the CAA and busting the myths over it as in a detailed statement the MHA has stated that no proof of ancestry and any document such as date of birth or place of birth will suffice to prove the citizenship. Despite the clarification, violent anti-CAA protests continue indicating that the protests are manufactured and are the handiwork of people with vested interests.
Recently, in Lucknow, the violent mob burned an entire police post. A total of 20 motorcycles, 10 cars, 3 buses and 4 media OB vans were torched by the violent mobs in the area surrounding Parvati Chowk in Lucknow. Ahmedabad in Gujarat also witnessed even more disturbing scenes. One of the videos that have gone viral on social media shows a violent, bigoted mob pelting stones at police vehicles and personnel. What is particularly disturbing is the visual of police personnel being cornered by a blood-thirsty mob which then tries to lynch him. A total of 12 policemen have been injured by the murderous mobs in Ahmedabad. Another video from Shah-e-Alam area in Ahmedabad captures how violent mobs cornered some police personnel into one particular corner and then started pelting stones at them indiscriminately.
Horrible video from Ahemdabad in Gujarat. This is how the protesters went after the Police. Hope and pray no cop was lynched. Who says there is a ban on peaceful protests across India? Protests do not mean you start violently attacking cops and damaging public property. Just sad. pic.twitter.com/hsqjuw3WEd
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) December 19, 2019
Anti-CAA protest in Shah-e-Alam area turned violent, protestors pelted stones on cops | #Ahmedabad .#Gujarat #CitizenshipAmmendmentAct @GujaratPolice @AhmedabadPolice pic.twitter.com/gskQUSxtug
— Tv9 Gujarati (@tv9gujarati) December 19, 2019
The anti-CAA protest organised at the August Kranti Maidan saw a huge crowd turn out as Bollywood celebrities like Farhan Akhtar, Huma Qureshi and Sushant Singh Rajput too joined in. In multiple videos which have now gone viral, most of the protestors assembled at the August Kranti Maidan have zero knowledge about the Act and haven’t even read the bill in detail. They all are just the part a massive misinformation campaign or in like Farhan Akhtar’s case, joined the protest because everyone is joining the bandwagon.
The BJP’s outreach programme will go a long way in helping to quell down the protests and instead engage in dialogue with the naysayers of the crucial Citizenship Amendment Act.