Citizenship Amendment Bill: Army columns deployed in Assam, Tripura amid violent protests

Army columns have been deployed in Assam and Tripura to contain the growing protests against the Citizenship Amendment Bill. Two columns were deployed in Assam, while one has been deployed in Tripura. Field Commanders and Army headquarters are also monitoring the situation. One column is 70 Army personnel across ranks.

The Centre also airlifted 5,000 paramilitary personnel to the states for maintenance of law and order in the wake of the anti-Citizenship Amendment Bill protests. The government withdrew 20 companies (2,000 personnel) from Jammu and Kashmir where they were deployed to maintain peace before the BJP government's decision to revoke Article 370. Officials told India Today that the remaining 30 companies were withdrawn from various other places and moved to the Northeastern states.

Assam: Bus torched by protesters, near Janta Bhawan in Dispur, against #CitizenshipAmendmentBill2019 pic.twitter.com/yUAkYPjWtk

- ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2019

Protesters have clashed with the authorities in various parts of Assam. In Guwahati student protestors have taken out marches in large numbers. Students proceeded towards the Secretariat from multiple directions. According to student leaders, many agitators were injured in police action in front of the Secretariat.

Another group reached Guwahati's central area Ganeshguri, as another group broke a barricade in GS Road. Police lathi-charged the protestors and teargas shells were thrown towards the students.

#WATCH Assam: Protests continue against #CitizenshipAmmendmentBill2019, in Guwahati. Police also use tear gas shells to disperse the protesters. pic.twitter.com/5lul19ToTO

- ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2019

Not only in Guwahati, protests took place in Dibrugarh as well where police shot rubber bullets at protestors. Teargas shells were also used. Hundreds of protestors have been detained in Guwahati, Dibrugarh and Jorhat.

The student protesters damaged a stage erected on the road for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's proposed summit meeting with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe on Sunday. They also pulled down hoardings and banners advertising the government's welfare schemes and made a bonfire of those before the Secretariat.

Guwahati: Protest against #CitizenshipAmendmentBill2019 continues in #Assam pic.twitter.com/Bmu6LRRKnZ

- ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2019

The Northeast Frontier Railway on Wednesday cancelled many trains and rescheduled a few amid the anti-CAB protests.

Gauhati University, Cotton University and Dibrugarh University postponed examinations scheduled for Wednesday. The students from different universities have been protesting since Monday morning.

Also read: Citizenship Amendment Bill: 'Amit Shah will be in league of Hitler,' says Owaisi

Also read: Citizenship Amendment Bill 2019 tabled in Rajya Sabha: Here's all you need to know