Amidst placards opposing the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, the National Population Register and the National Register of Citizens, S. Abdul Kalam (24) of Kuniyamuthur and K. Reshma Sherin (19) of Karumbukadai held fresh bouquets as they got married in the presence of protesters at a Shaheen Bagh-like dharna at Athupalam here on Thursday.
“We decided to get married at the dharna venue as our dear and near ones are here,” said Mr. Kalam to journalists.
According to him, the marriage date was fixed three months ago and both families did not expect anti-CAA stir escalating to this level.
“We wanted everyone to be around us for the marriage. Hence the marriage was shifted from the auditorium to the dharna venue,” said Mr. Kalam urging that CAA be repealed. “We think our marriage was revolutionary. We have got married amidst [thousands of protesting] people,” said Ms. Sherin.
They posed for wedding photos with placards opposing CAA, NPR and NRC with thousands of protesters in the background. The newly wed said that they wish no one had to spend the happiest moment of their life at a protest venue.
The protesters, who dubbed the dharna venue adjacent to Irshadul Islam Shafia Sunnath Jamath mosque, Athupalam, as Coimbatore’s ‘Shaheen Bagh’ wished the couple who also raised anti-CAA, NPR, NRC slogans after their marriage was solemnised.
Meanwhile, organisers of the dharna said that the agitation would be continued with same vigour until the Central Government repealed the CAA. The dharna was started by Islamic organisations and Muslim-centric parties late on Wednesday.
