As anti-CAA protests gripped nation, Amanatullah Khan, Badshah Moitra and others were spotted among rioters

Ever since the Citizenship Amendment Bill was passed in both the houses of the Parliament, anti-CAA protests have gripped the nation with many parts of India including Northeast and parts of Assam have been placed under curfew. The protests spilled over to Delhi over the weekend and saw miscreants damaging public property. Throughout the protests across the states, one thing is common. The presence of prominent faces from the Opposition who are inciting the mob to damage public property.

The situation in Assam has improved greatly but the Congress and the AIUDF tried their best to burn the entire state with both the parties making provocative remarks and patronising the anti-CAA stir in the state. Both the parties have specific political objectives to achieve and the statements by leaders from both the parties show that they are the ones actually pushing Assam into the crisis that the state is in.

The student unions are on-ground and leading the protests in the state with political patronage and there are two main factions leading these protests- the All Assam Students Union (AASU) and the All Assam Minorities Students’ Union (AAMSU). There is a clear dichotomy that can be read into the objects that these two factions are trying to pursue. For the Congress, the issue is not limited to Assam. The manner in which Rahul Gandhi tried to trigger panic with a provocative tweet reading, “The CAB is an attempt by Modi-Shah Govt to ethnically cleanse the North East. It is a criminal attack on the North East, their way of life and the idea of India. I stand in solidarity with the people of the North East and am at their service,” shows that the grand old party is looking at the Assam agitation as an opportunity to bring down Himanta Biswa Sarma and Assam CM, Sarbananda Sonowal, both of whom have emerged as tall leaders in the Assam and Northeast.

Mamata on the other hand has given a total free hand to the mob to burn the entire state in a bid to bring down the Modi-Shah duo. It is important to note that Mamata earlier supported the NRC when the Left was in power in West Bengal. In the name of protesting against CAB and NRC, Muslim mobs have ravaged the state’s properties with torching vehicles, trains, ransacking buildings and fracturing the law and order of the state. Noted Bengali Actor Badshah Moitra was also found to be a part of the violent protest in Bengal.

Instead of taking action on them, senior State Minister and Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim has urged them not to strengthen the BJP by fomenting ‘lawlessness’. Mamata has also used public money to issue advertisements against CAB and NRC stating that they will not be implemented in West Bengal. WB governor Dhankar urged Mamata to withdraw the advertisements and stated, “How can an elected head of a government use public money to give advertisement in national media that there will be no NRC, no CAB in state? This advertisement is unconstitutional.” The Governor said as the constitutional head of the state he had very “gracefully” drawn Banerjee’s attention to the issue, and urged her to withdraw it.“I am sure you all will agree that public money can’t be used to lead an agitation against law of the land.”

The protests have now spread into the National Capital as parts of Delhi witnessed violence on Sunday. The Jamia Milia Islamia University had already emerged as the epicentre of the anti-CAA protests and the violence along with it. The protests also took a patently communal colour as Allahu Akbar chants echoed at the University. The situation only deteriorated as the violent protesters went berserk resorting to vandalism and arson in the National Capital. Violence erupted in parts of South Delhi as the violent protesters went on a rampage even as 1,000 protesters clashed with the police setting at least six buses and over 50 vehicles on fire in Mathura Road, New Friends Colony, Jamia Nagar and Sarai Julena.

Earlier, there were reports of 12 cops getting injured and two of them getting admitted to the ICU of a Delhi hospital after university students turned hooligans and attacked the policemen. In what clearly corroborates the fact of utter communalisation of protests, the protesting Jamia students have been heard allegedly chanting  “Hinduon Se Azadi”- slogans similar to the ones that were raised during the 1946 Direct Action Day which led to the historical blunder of partition of India.

There are also reports of AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan being spotted at the areas where the violent protests took place. Police sources have also told ANI that they are investigating elements that caused violence in the National Capital. Three DTC buses were set ablaze during the violent protests near Bharat Nagar and one fire tender had to be rushed to the spot for dousing the fire. Two firemen also got injured in the incident. Delhi BJP has come out attacking the AAP over the shameful, violent incident. The Delhi unit chief of the party, Manoj Tiwari said, “AAP MLA is provoking people at the behest of Arvind Kejriwal. The Muslim of India is with India and is not going to be influenced by traitors like you. Stop provoking people. The people of Delhi will teach AAP traitors a lesson. The sin of AAP is being exposed.”

Earlier in July, AAP Minister Imran Hussain was found to be a part of the mob that desecrated a temple. Expectedly, there was a stoic silence from Delhi CM Kejriwal as he refused to condemn the incident. To prevent any further unrest in Assam, the National Investigation Agency on Saturday booked Assam-based anti-corruption and Right to Information activist Akhil Gogoi under the amended Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Unsurprisingly, AAP against shifted the goalposts as AAP leaders Sisodia and Aatishi implicated the Delhi Police in burning of buses as they conveniently ignored the role of AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan in the violent protests.

Kerala is seeing a joint protest by the UDF and the LDF against the CAB as Kerala CM Vijayan seemingly inspired from Kejriwal is now sitting on a dharna along with prominent Kerala Congress leaders.

It’s shameful that the Opposition leaders are plotting against the nation by using students and hiding behind them. It’s about time that their nefarious agenda be exposed to the public.