india

Updated: Dec 17, 2019 18:57 IST

A delegation of 12 opposition parties, led by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, on Tuesday met President Ram Nath Kovind and urged him to ask the government to withdraw the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

Addressing the media after the meeting, Gandhi accused the government of “shutting down” the voices of the people and bringing legislations that are not acceptable to them.

The whole country is agitating against the CAA, she said, adding the opposition was anguished over the police action against the protesters in the Northeast and in Delhi. On Tuesday, police fired tear gas shells on a crowd protesting against the amended citizenship law in Delhi’s Seelampur area, barely a day after a crackdown on the Jamia Millia Islamia campus in south Delhi.

“The situation is very serious. We are very anguished at the manner in which police dealt with peaceful protesters exercising their democratic rights,” said Gandhi flanked by other opposition leaders.

She said police personnel entered women’s hostels in Jamia Millia Islamia and “mercilessly” beat up students. “Delhi is an example where the police trespassed into the Jamia women’s hostel and dragged them out. They beat up students mercilessly. You have seen that the Modi government seems to have no compassion when it comes to shutting down people’s voices,” she said.

Apart from Gandhi, the delegation comprised of Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien, TR Baalu of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Ram Gopal Yadav and Javed Ali of the Samajwadi Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, D Raja of the Communist Party of India, Rashtriya Janata Dal’s Manoj Jha, ET Mohammad Basheer of the Indian Union Muslim League, National Conference’s Hasnain Masoodi and Sirajuddin Ajmal of the All India United Democratic Front.

The other two signatories of the memorandum submitted to the President were Sharad Yadav of Loktantrik Janata Dal and Shatrujeet Singh of the Revolutionary Socialist Party.

Gandhi’s colleagues AK Antony, Ahmed Patel, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Kapil Sibal, Anand Sharma and Jairam Ramesh were also part of the delegation. The leaders first assembled at the Mahatma Gandhi statue in the Parliament House Complex and later proceeding to the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

“As the Head of the State, you are the custodian of the Indian Constitution. We, the undersigned, appeal to you to safeguard our Constitution from being violated. We urge you to intervene in the matter and advise the government to immediately withdraw the Citizenship Amendment Act,” the opposition parties said in their memorandum to the President.