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DMK, allies hold massive anti-CAA rally in Chennai
The DMK’s rally had the support of its allies including the Congress, MDMK, VCK, besides pro-Tamil groups. The parties started a march of about two kilometers, after the Madras HC gave it a go ahead.
Thousands of workers of opposition parties, led by the DMK, took to the streets on Monday in Tamil Nadu’s Chennai to protest the Citizenship Amendment Act seeking its withdrawal.
The rally will add to the swelling nationwide protests, which have turned violent at several places, as protesters and opposition parties have upped their ante against the citizenship act.
Seventeen people have died in Uttar Pradesh during the protests that have taken place in the aftermath of this month’s passage of CAA, which seeks to fast-track the grant of Indian citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Jains and Parsi in the Muslim-majority countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
The DMK’s rally has the support of its allies including the Congress, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), Left parties and Indian Union Muslim League besides pro-Tamil groups.
The parties started their march from downtown Egmore towards the Rajarathinam Stadium, a distance of about two kilometers, after the Madras high court gave a go ahead.
The DMK’s chief MK Stalin, its Lok Sabha member Kanimozhi, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, VCK president Thol Thirumavalavan, Congress’ Tamil Nadu unit president KS Alagiri, Dravidar Kazhagam president K Veeramani and others led thousands of their party workers and supporters.
As the senior leaders held placards against CAA and the workers shouted slogans against the contentious act while marching through the area.
The Madras High Court had cleared the decks for the DMK to conduct the anti-CAA rally and asked the police to monitor it through drones.
The high court had in a special sitting on Sunday night said protests and agitations can’t be banned in a democracy and directed the police to ensure law and order.
The special sitting of the court was conducted on a plea seeking to restrain the DMK and its allies to hold the rally on grounds that violence was reported in such rallies in Assam and Uttar Pradesh.
Thousands of policemen have been deployed along the rally’s path as the force monitored its movement through drones. More than 100 closed-circuit television or CCTV cameras are also being used.
