Linguist and activist Ganesh N. Devy has termed the agitations against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) as the ‘strong voice of the motherland’ and emphasised the need for strengthening the fight against fascism.
He was inaugurating an awareness programme on ‘NPR, NRC: Questions before the public’ organised as part of Bharat Jodo-Samvidhan Bachao campaign by Samvidhan Suraksha Samiti in Hubballi on Thursday evening.
‘Boycott NPR’
Mr. Devy said the country was now becoming ‘Shaheen Bagh’ with anti-CAA protests being held continuously across. He gave a call for boycotting the National Population Register (NPR) survey not by taking to the streets but by pasting ‘No CAA, No NRC, No NPR’ stickers on the doors of houses.
Maintaining that India was not the only country where the fight against fascism was underway, he said there was a dire need to fight against ideologies to which Donald Trump and Narendra Modi were in power.
Mr. Devy said it was regretful that the strong voice was not raised after the abolition of Article 370 of Constitution and after the Ayodhya verdict. “The mistake should not recur. Through a unified fight, we can win,” he said.
He said there would be no future, if people did not unite to protest against disgrace to the Constitution and national flag. He also accused the ruling dispensation of trying to divide people on the lines of religion, which was very harmful to the nation.
‘Counter acts’
Activist Aradhana Bhargav from Madhya Pradesh said the ruling disposition was sending activists to prison for raising rightful questions pertaining to the problems of country. However, such acts could be countered through Shaheen Bagh-type protests, Mr. Bhargav said.
Aland MLA B.R. Patil, former MP I.G. Sanadi, Lokesh Diwan from Haryana, Ganesh Gondre from Maharashtra and others were present at the awareness programme, which was presided over by the president of the vedike, Pitambrappa Bilar.
