Mumbai puts its anti-CAA act together at Azad Maidan

The city on Friday raised its voice against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) again, this time at Azad Maidan in south

The city on Friday raised its voice against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) again, this time at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai, although a bit softly compared to its chorus at August Kranti Maidan on December 19. While the police said 1,500 citizens attended the rally, the organisers pegged the turnout at 10,000.

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The rally, organised by Joint Action Committee for Social Justice, brought together students from Mumbai and beyond – Umar Khalid and student leaders from Jamia Millia Islamia University, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), along with students of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B) and various colleges affiliated to the University of Mumbai and several political parties.

Although the protest was planned at 3pm, the crowd started trickling in from 1pm, carrying placards, banners against the CAA and NRC and the Indian flag. Some were back after the August Kranti Maidan stir, while others wanted to make their dissent heard or seen this time. Many stood in quiet corners carrying their message on the placards, while some invigorated the gathering with their chants. From silent supporters to selfie-taking enthusiasts, the crowd started to swell up by evening, with people from all walks of life – film artists, political activists and working professionals – joining in. “The country is currently in an existential crisis. Instead of addressing the country’s sliding economy, or the growing agrarian problems, the government is demanding for proof of our citizenship,” said Khalid, a student activist and former student of the Jawaharlal Nehru University. He termed the current situation in the country a result of the government’s tactics to distract people from the real problem.

Students demanded the government stop blaming ongoing protests and riots on a particular community. “The CAA is against indigenous communities, as it forces people to either be Hindus or Muslims,” said Christy Nag, a student from TISS.

Actor Varun Grover recited a poem “Hum kaagaz nahi dikhayenge” before commenting on the current status of the country. “Dictators who target public are eventually targeted by the public; now is the time for public to make their voice clear,” he said.

Actor Swara Bhasker also joined the students on the stage. Actor Richa Chadha, who was in the crowd, said, “This is an unconstitutional act, and we have the right to protest peacefully. We don’t need this disruptive, expensive exercise right now when we should be prioritising climate change, education and economy, not hate.”