The National Law School of India University, Bengaluru, has joined other institutes across the country, to condemn the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the brutality of the police action against the protests organised by students from the Aligarh Muslim University and the Jamia Millia Islamia.
“The brutality of the state is evident in its response to these protests: the police has entered into campuses without authorisation, used tear-gas shells, violently lathi-charged and even fired live bullet rounds on students. These moves, apart from being a clear violation of universally accepted human rights, are also an assault on the rule of law, morality and the democratic ethos and tradition that is fundamental to dignified living,” said the Student Bar Association (SBA) in a statement issued on Tuesday.
This move, said the SBA, “is intended to bring about a chilling effect on freedom of speech and to curb dissent”. Students have also appealed to the judiciary to take cognizance of these actions and the use of force by the state.
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The release also noted that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 was against the foundational values that the Constitution of India was built upon, and called upon members of the legal fraternity to reject the “morally bankrupt” law.
“We, the students of National Law School of India University, stand together, arm in arm and hand in hand with concerned students and citizens during this extremely crucial yet difficult time for our democratic republic in rejecting the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.”