New Delhi/Chennai/Kolkata: Political figures across the country are speaking up against the detention of people during the widespread anti-Citizenship Act protests.
Makkal Needhi Maiam chief Kamal Haasan, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, and author Arundathi Roy were among those who condemned the detention of protesters, who included historian Ramchandra Guha and Swaraj Abhiyaan chief Yogendra Yadav.
Yadav and Guha were detained by the police in Delhi and Bengaluru, respectively.
In a tweet, Haasan said he was applauding with “glee the stupidity of the government for stoking the fire of Satyagaraha by arresting” Guha and Yadav.
I applaud with glee at the stupidity of the government for stoking the fire of Satyagraha by arresting the thinking and questioning minds of India like @Ram_Guha & @_YogendraYadav .
Yet I am concerned for their safety. India stands with you.— Kamal Haasan (@ikamalhaasan) December 19, 2019
“I applaud with glee at the stupidity of the government for stoking the fire of Satyagraha by arresting the thinking and questioning minds of India like @Ram_Guha & @_YogendraYadav,” he said in the tweet.
“Yet I am concerned for their safety. India stands with you,” he added.
Similarly extending her solidarity with Guha and other agitators, Banerjee said the Centre was scared of one of India’s “most accomplished” historians.
This government is scared of students. This government is scared of one of India’s most accomplished historians for speaking to the media on #CAB #NRC and holding a poster of GandhiJi. I condemn the detention of Ram Guha. We extend our full solidarity to all those detained
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) December 19, 2019
“This government is scared of students. This government is scared of one of India’s most accomplished historians for speaking to the media on #CAB #NRC and holding a poster of GandhiJi. I condemn the detention of Ram Guha. We extend our full solidarity to all those detained,” she tweeted.
Roy, on the other hand, expressed solidarity with protesters and said this is a day when “love and solidarity faced down bigotry and fascism”. In a statement, she said the protests have “exposed” the government.
“Still we Rise. India is standing up. This government stands exposed and discredited. This is a day when love and solidarity face down bigotry and fascism. Everybody has joined in to protest against the unconstitutional CAB and NRC.”
“We are Dalits, Muslims, Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Adivasis, Marxists, Ambedkarites, Farmers, Workers, Academics, Writers, Poets, Painters and most of all Students who are the future of this country. This time you will not stop us,” she said.
Yadav was among those protesters who were detained by the Delhi Police near Red Fort when they tried to take out a march in defiance of the prohibitory orders imposed to protest the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
Guha, a noted historian, was detained in Bengaluru when he and many others defied prohibitory orders to protest against the CAA.