Citizenship Amendment Act protests LIVE updates: Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) chief and actor Kamal Haasan met the students of the Madras University in Chennai who are protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act for the last two days.

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Petitions against Citizenship Amendment Act will come up for hearing in Supreme Court at around 11.30 am. The petitions have been filed by various political parties, including Congress, Indian Union Muslim League and Trinamool Congress. Former bureaucrats, NGOs and students are among the other petitioners. A total of 59 petitions are listed for hearing in the apex court concerning the citizenshp law.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will hold a march from Howrah Maidan to Esplanade in Kolkata. She has been conducting protest marches against the amended Citizenship Act since Monday. TMC MPs Nusrat Jahan and Mimi Chakraborty also joined the protest rally on Tuesday. Scores of TMC workers, senior party leaders and protesters rallied behind her as she took to streets.

The Bahujan Samaj Party will be meeting President Ram Nath Kovind to seek the repeal of the new Citizenship Act. The BSP, which was not part of other Opposition parties in their visit to the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Tuesday, would be meeting the President separately. "We had sought time from President Ram Nath Kovind and would be meeting him tomorrow morning," BSP leader Danish Ali told PTI.

The Kolkata High Court will hear three writ petitions challenging Mamata Banerjee’s statement about the Citizenship Act not being applicable to West Bengal, an advertisement given in the media to this effect using public funds and Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim’s hate speech, blaming BJP for violence in the state.

In protest against the amended Citizenship Act, employees of the Assam government will cease work. ​Sadou Asam Karmachari Parishad (SAKP) President Basab Kalita told PTI that all employees of the state government across Assam will not attend offices on 18 December. "We have opposed the Bill since the beginning and will continue to do so till the Act is revoked," he said. When members of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) came to the state in May last year to take opinion of the people of Assam on the Bill, the SAKP had submitted a memorandum raising objections, Kalita said.

The brutalization of students and the attack on universities is against the fundamental norms of a democratic society. As teachers, students, scholars and members of civil society across the world, we are watching with extreme concern the situation unfolding at Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University.

"Amit Shah, did you permit Delhi Police to pelt stones? Were they trained for this too? Your government blamed Kashmiri youths for this, but the police too is engaging in stone-pelting now," he tweeted. Stone-pelting incidents were reported in Delhi's Seelampur and Brijpuri on Tuesday.

Sharing a video of a stone-pelting incident in Delhi, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh asked if Home Minister Amit Shah gave the cops the permission to so the same. He criticised the government for pelting stones, when that is what they criticised the Kashmiris for.

She has been leading protest marches and rallies in Kolkata since Monday, insisting that Citizenship Act will not be implemented in West Bengal.

The TMC supremo will address a rally at Rani Rashmoni Road on 19 December, and at the minority-dominated Park Circus area the next day.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee would lead two more rallies against the amended Citizenship Act in the city on Thursday and Friday, party sources told PTI.

However, sources said the police 'post' is in fact a tent which was being set up so that policemen can sit there and escape the biting cold. Sources said that the High Court had directed police to ensure that no protests take place within 100 metres of the campus and that is why policemen in plainclothes are posted there. However, the tent will not be placed now since the students have threatened to vandalise it.

They also condemned the varsity administration for issuing a circular allowing students to submit their end semester examination answers through email/images of handwritten scripts through WhatsApp/personally to course professors.

The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union claimed that a police post was being set up in the varsity's premises and that police personnel were entering campus like they had done at Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University.

On directions of Delhi Police, the Noida Traffic Police extended the closure of the Kalindi Kunj road, which connects Noida and Delhi. The road will remain closed today, even as the situation in Delhi remains tense since the 15 December Jamia violence. Commuters have been asked to use an alternate route to reach Deli and Faridabad.

Entry and exit gates of Jaffrabad and Maujpur-Babarpur Metro stations in Delhi were closed. However, interchange facility will continue towards Shiv Vihar at Maujpur.

"We see this Act as a threat to the integrity and unabridged continuity of language, culture, demographics and economic wellbeing of the indigenous population of Assam and the northeast," the letter read.

In a letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Assam Association of North America urged that the Assam Accord of 1985 be implemented in its entirety, where it should prevail over the Act in case of any conflict. "The recent passage of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019, causes us concern that it will adversely impact the people of Assam and the northeast," said the association in its letter, dated 14 December.

The recently enacted Citizenship Amendment Act will adversely impact people of Assam and the northeast, an association representing the Assamese community in North America said.

Shahi Imam of Delhi's Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari clarified that under the Citizenship Amendment Act, the Muslim refugees who come to India from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh will not get Indian citizenship. "It has nothing to do with the Muslims living in India," he told ANI.

Howrah City Police Deputy Commissioner of Police (Headquarters) Ajeet Singh Yadav was injured in both his legs after being hit by splinters of the bomb but was discharged from a hospital after he was administered medical aid.

However, a senior police officer and two other personnel were injured when a group of agitators hurled crude bombs at them in Sankrail area of Howrah district on Tuesday night.

No fresh incident of violence over amended citizenship law was reported in West Bengal, police said.

Similarly people going to Noida from Mathura road are advised to take Ashram Chowk, DND or Noida link road, the police said. "Okhla underpass going towards Kalindi Kunj is also closed for traffic movement," they tweeted.

Okhla underpass and a portion of Mathura Road were closed for traffic movement on Wednesday morning, the Delhi Traffic Police said. "Road No. 13A between Mathura Road and Kalindi Kunj is closed for traffic movement. People coming from Noida are advised to take DND or Akshardham to reach Delhi," the traffic police tweeted.

Raids are being conducted to apprehend some other people who have also been identified, ANI reported. Delhi Police had filed two FIRs in connection with the violence in Jaffrabad under the Indian Penal Code sections for rioting and damaging public property. Five people were detained and their backgrounds were being checked by the police. One FIR was also registered in Brijpuri under relevant IPC sections for stone-pelting.

Three FIRs were registered in Seelampur, Jafrabad and Dayalpur police stations in connection with Tuesday's incident. Five persons were arrested for Seelampur and Jafrabad incidents, while one was arrested late night for the Dayalpur incident, PTI reported.

The police also conducted patrolling in the Seelampur area, which had witnessed violent protests and stone-pelting on Tuesday.

Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) has been imposed in North East district of Delhi, prohibiting prohibit the assembly of more than four people in the area.

BSP was not a part of an Opposition delegation, led by interim Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, which met President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday to express concern over the violence and police crackdown on Jamia Milia Islamia University on Sunday evening.

Bahujan Samaj Party's parliamentary delegation will meet President Ram Nath Kovind to appeal to him to repeal the Citizenship Act. Among the delegation will be the party's MP in Rajya Sabha Satish Chandra Mishra.

Assam finance minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had alleged the involvement of PFI in the recent violence in Guwahati at a press meet on Tuesday. Professors of IIT Guwahati and Tezpur University are also likely to be arrested too

Assam Popular Front of India (PFI) president Aaminul Haque was arrested by Dispur Police. He has been accused of inciting violence during the Citizenship Amendment Bill protests in Guwahati this week.

A section of students of the Madras University here continued their protest for the third day on Wednesday against the amendment to the Citizenship Act. Defiant students said they will continue their agitation. Meanwhile, police personnel continued to be deployed on the campus. Police personnel, who had entered the campus on Tuesday, said they had done so for the "safety of the students."

Normalcy returned in Guwahati while the curfew imposed in Dibrugarh was relaxed for 14 hours since 6 am on Wednesday. The curfew imposed in Guwahati, the gateway to the Northeast, on 11 December in the wake of protests against the citizenship law was lifted on Tuesday following improvement in law and order, officials said. No fresh incidents of violence have been reported in Assam on Wednesday morning.

Khan was booked for negligence of duty in the BRD hospital deaths but was later given a clean chit .

Kafeel Khan, the doctor who hit the headlines in Gorakhpur after the death of 60 children in the BRD hospital in 2017, has now been booked for allegedly giving a provocative speech at the open talk in Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) on the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. The police said that the FIR was registered against him under section 153-A (Promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion) of IPC and a probe was underway.

The Supreme Court of India has issued a notice to Centre as it admitted a bunch of petitions challenging the Citizenshp Amendment Act. The court has, however, refused to stay the law as enacted by the Parliament. The centre is supposed to file its reply in the second week of January.

The Supreme Court of India admitted 59 petitions against the contentious Citizenship Amendment Law 2019 and has asked the Centre to file its reply by second week of January. The petitions under consideration include, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh's plea challenging constittutionality of the Citizenship law.

The court also directed the NIA to ensure regular medical checkup of Gogoi and allow his family members and lawyers to meet him. As he was being taken to the court, he shouted that he has been subjected to “prochondo atyachar" (extreme torture). “The agitation must not stop. I appeal to people to continue the protests till the law is repealed,” he said before being taken tothe court room.

The Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti leader was brought to Guwahati from Jorhat amid tight security and was produced at the court, which remanded him to 10-day NIA custody.

Guwahati Peasants’ leader​ Akhil Gogoi was brought to the NIA headquarters on Tuesday night. Gogoi, arrested under the stringent UAPA amid protests over the citizenship law, was sent to 10-day NIA custody. He was arrested on 12 December in Jorhat amid widespread violent protests in Assam and was later handed over to the NIA.

Citizenship law protesters will be organising a prayer meeting at Students Field here later in the day.

The curfew was relaxed from 6 am in areas under Lumdiengjri police station and Sadar police station limits, an order issued by East Khasi Hills District Magistrate MW ​Nongbri said. Curfew will be reimposed in these areas from 8 pm till further orders. Banks, markets and shops were open and vehicles were plying on the roads.

Curfew was relaxed for 14 hours in Shillong on Wednesday even as the ban on mobile internet services remained in force.

The petition was mentioned before a bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Rekha Palli by advocate Rizwan and the court allowed it to be listed on Thursday. The plea has sought judicial inquiry into the action taken by the police, including allegedly firing at students. It also sought proper medical treatment and compensation for the injured students.

The Delhi High Court agreed to hear a PIL seeking the setting up of a fact- finding committee to look into the recent violence at Jamia Milia Islamia University.

The protesters, including students and local residents, hung a large map of India outside the varsity gate number 7 showing the places where students from other universities are carrying out protests against the Citizenship Act. Another large poster urged the protesters "to maintain the acceleration with zero violence (sic)".

Protest against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens outside Jamia Millia Islamia University entered the third day.

Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said that the Act will be implemented in the south Indian state.

NCP member Jitendra Awhad objected to it and said any law which is available in public domain can be discussed in the House. Amid the noisy scenes following arguments over the issue, the speaker adjourned the House for 10 minutes.

Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis said, "Both the Houses of Parliament have passed the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. This (state) government can't decide not to implement it." Senior BJP leader Sudhir ​Mungantiwar said, "The Assembly members cannot comment on decisions of the President, Assembly speaker and Parliament. Hence, CAA cannot be called 'unconstitutional'."

The Maharashtra Assembly witnessed an uproar when the opposition BJP objected to senior Congress leader Ashok Chavan's comments that the amended Citizenship Act should not be implemented in the state.

Meanwhile, Kalaburagi Police Commissioner said that permission has been denied for a 'bandh' called by a consortium of Left and Muslim organisations on Thursday in Kalaburagi. He cited recruitment exams of different departments and maintenance of law, order and communal harmony as the reasons.

DMK chief MK Stalin said that the party, along with its 11 allies, will hold a protest in Chennai against the Citizenship Act on 23 December. Speaking to reporters after an all-party meeting held at the DMK headquarters and chaired by him, Stalin said that the parties called for the revocation of the law.

"An attempt is being made to drag AAP's name in the recent incidents. Why will AAP do this and how will it benefit us? We all should maintain peace," he said.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal denied the BJP's accusation regarding the Aam Aadmi Party government's failure in maintaining law and order in the national capital. He said that only those fearing defeat in the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections are inciting riots.

"The situation in the country is becoming worse day by day and in my lifetime I have never witnessed such situations. The Ganga-Jamuna Tehjeeb is being effected and country is getting separated in the name of religion and hatred. As a normal Urdu writer, I have have decided to return my Padma Shri award as protest against the Citizenship Act," he told ANI.

Renowed Urdu humourist and writer Mujtaba Hussain announced returning of Padma Shri award to the government in protest against Citizenship Amendement Act.

"A memorandum has also been given (to Modi) seeking dual citizenship for Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka," he said adding AIADMK Rajya Sabha MPs also clarified this aspect when the Bill was taken up in the Upper House.

"They have clarified in both Parliament and through (Narendra Modi and Amit Shah) the media that this will not affect Indians at all," he said.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami defended his party's support to the amendment to the Citizenship Act in Parliament saying the law will not affect any Indian, to whichever religion one may belong. "The Citizenship Amendment Act will not impact any Indian living in India, whichever religion they may profess," he said.

Accompanied by thousands of people, Banerjee began the protest march from Howrah Maidan which will culminate at Dorina Crossing at Esplanade in the heart of Kolkata. "We will never allow NRC and the amended Citizenship Act in Bengal. No one will be asked to leave the state. We believe in the coexistence of all religions, castes and creed. All of us are citizens of this country, no one can take that away from us," she said.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee hit the streets for the third consecutive day against the amended citizenship law and NRC.

"Our democracy is being shattered. There is no system prevailing now. Someone is being administered oath at 7am in the morning, governments are being made during the night."

Urdu author Mujtaba Hussain, who returned his Padma Shri Award in protest against the Citizenship Act, said that there is an atmosphere of fear in the country.

Additional DCP (North-East) RP Meena told ANI that all those arrested in connection with the violence in Delhi on Tuesday are locals.

She also posed questions about why the Aadhaar is being linked with everything when the government had said that it is not a proof of citizenship. “Withdraw CAA and NRC, or else I will see how you implement it here (in West Bengal),” she said.

Asking Shah to control his party cadres and blaming the BJP of wanting to turn the entire country into a detention centre, Mamata said that she will not let this happen.

She asked Shah to ensure that the country does not burn over the amended citizenship law, adding that his job is to “douse the fire”. “BJP says they aim at ‘Sabka saath, sabka vikas’ (everyone’s development), but in reality, what they have done is ‘sabke saath sarvanash’ (everyone’s destruction),” she said.

On the third day of a series of protest marches in Kolkata, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee urged Home Minister Amit Shah to maintain peace in the country and remember that he is not just a BJP leader.

Dujarric was asked if the Secretary General has any comment on the protests in India over the CAA. Dujarric said he would also refer to the comments of High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on the Act. Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights had said in Geneva that it is "concerned" that the CAA is "fundamentally discriminatory in nature".

"We are concerned about the violence and alleged use of excessive force by security forces that we've seen that have been taking place in the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act. We very much call for restraint and urge full respect for the rights of freedom of opinion and expression and peaceful assembly," Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric told a daily press briefing.

Urging respect for the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has voiced concern over the violence and alleged use of excessive force by security personnel in India against the amended Citizenship Act.

The protest gained momentum after 1 pm when schoolchildren and women from the neighbourhood joined it. A few protesters taped their mouths and wore black bands. Some children in school uniform stood atop Jamia's boundary walls holding placards.

"If it came to NRC, we vow not to participate in it," she said and asked the protesters to follow the path of non-violence shown by Mahatma Gandhi. The government wants to deflect attention from the real issues of bread and butter by pitching one community against another, she alleged.

Joining the protest around noon at Jamia Millia Islamia, social activist Medha Patkar said it was not "citizenship amendment act but citizen amendment act".

The petition was filed by lawyer Nabila Hasan and JMI students Ladida Farzana and Ayesh Renna. The counsel appearing for the petitioner orally prayed that as an interim measure no coercive action be taken against the petitioners till the matter is heard by the court on Thursday. The court, however, refused to grant any such relief on the oral prayer.

The petition will be heard on 19 December along with other pleas relating to the protest. Justice Vibhu Bakhru sent the matter before Chief Justice DN Patel after the court was informed by Centre's counsel that the Supreme Court on Tuesday had said that the cases relating to CAA violence be heard by the Chief Justices of respective high courts.

A Delhi High Court judge transferred to the Chief Justice a plea seeking direction for release of the students and residents of Jamia Milia Islamia University and Aligarh Muslim University who were allegedly detained by the police and paramilitary forces during protests against the Citizenship Act.

Earlier in the day, the bench had agreed to hear on Thursday a PIL seeking setting up of a fact-finding committee to look into the violence at JMI University following protests over the CAA. Several public buses and two police vehicles were torched in the clash between students and police at New Friends' Colony near the Jamia university during the demonstrations.

The petition, filed through advocate Mehmood Prachha, seeks investigation by an independent agency like CBI or SIT into the violence at JMI. It also seeks "registration of FIR against the erring officials including police personnel who orchestrated the incidents of violence to create unrest and have thereafter resorted to brutalities against the students".

Another public interest litigation (PIL) was moved in the Delhi High Court on Wednesday in connection with the recent violence at the Jamia Millia Islamia university during protests against the Citizen Amendment Act. The joint petition, by Imam of Jama Masjid at Parliament House and two residents of Okhla, was mentioned before a bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Rekha Palli which allowed it to be listed for hearing on Thursday.

Expressing her ordeal, Wasit Shafi, a 23-year-old student from Kashmir studying MSc in Computer Science at the university, told ANI, "My ticket to Kashmir is on 24 December, however, I have to cancel it. The administration said that the university will reopen on 6 January. What if the exams which were scheduled now are held after 6 January? What if I cannot return during the exam schedule due to severe climatic conditions in Kashmir? I will lose a year."

There are also a few students who are uncertain about leaving the hostel, because they are not sure whether they would be able to return on time to the university when it reopens.

The students are also vacating the hostels because the university is closed till 5 January following the violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

After Sunday's violence in Delhi's Jamia Millia Islamia university over the Citizenship Amendment Act, the students are facing several difficulties, including the lack of accommodation as they are compelled to vacate the varsity's hostels, ANI reported.

"Among other issues, there is a lack of a method or framework on how the government is planning to verify whether refugees are persecuted or not. And secondly, the Home Minister keeps referring to 'persecuted minorities', but the Act doesn't mention the term in the same context," he said.

Congress leader and senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi on Wednesday addressed the media regarding the Citizenship Amendment Act and said that the government had violated several laws with the contentious new legislation.

Around 200 teachers carried placards reading "I stand with Jamia", "I am against CAA" and messages expressing gratitude to all supporting universities. The marchers also carried a large map of India showing sites of campus protests across the country.

Members of the Jamia Teachers' Association on Wednesday took out a peace march to thank all universities which have supported JMI students in their protest against the amended Citizenship Act and the National Register of Citizens.

However, the party chief said that all MPs of the party in both Houses had "made it clear" that they didn't support the National Register of Citizens (NRC), which is the exercise that is being paired with the CAA by critics of the law which will allow non-Muslim refugees of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh to apply for Indian citizenship.

"The Citizenship Amendment Act has nothing to do with Indian citizens, it deals only with foreigners," Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik said while reiterating the BJD's support for the contentious law against which nationwide protests have broken out for almost 10 days.

Days after violence erupted in the National Capital over protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, Delhi Police held a flag march in the Mustafabad and Ghonda areas on Wednesday.

The CPI is likely to file a petition before the Supreme Court, challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship Amendment Act, reports said on Wednesday. The petition will be filed by its general secretary D Raja, a statement from the party was quoted as saying by PTI.

Around 75 people gathered at Jaipur's Gandhi Circle for a peaceful protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act on Wednesday, with protesters giving speeches about their objections against the the contentious law. Universities across the country have protested against the law that seeks to give citizenship to non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh before December 2014.

Mufti Sayyad Ahmed Ali Kazi, the city's chief kazi, who had earlier appealed to citizens to support the protest, claimed nearly 40,000 people took part in the march.

The Act violates the basic frameworkof the Constitution and is against the Muslim community, the protesters charged. The march began outside the district court in Solapur and culminated at the collectorate, where the protesters submitted a memorandum to Deputy CollectorAjit Deshmukh, demanding that the Act be revoked.

Several Muslim organisations took out a protest march in Maharashtra's Solapur district on Wednesday against the Citizenship Amendment Act, alleging that it discriminates on religious lines.

Nadda was addressing an election meeting at Sarath in Deoghar district in support of Jharkhand agriculture minister Randhir Singh. "Why there is a stomach ache for Congress leaders over CAA?" the BJP leader was quoted as saying by PTI.

"Should not they be given Indian citizenship? Where will they go? For them India is home," Nadda said. Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians facing persecution in the three neighbouring countries will be eligible for citizenship under the new law.

BJP working president JP Nadda on Wednesday asserted that "India is home" for people of the six non-Muslim communities who have allegedly been facing religious persecution in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh. He made a scathing attack on the Congress for opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act.

In criticism of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's objection and resistance against the Act, Dhankar said, "An elected government is fully bound by the law of the land. The chief minister (Mamata Banerjee) took an oath to act according to the Constitution, and this law (Citizenship Amendment Act ) is part of the Constitution."

West Bengal governor J Dhankhar on Wednesday said that he was "pained" by the "deep sense of fear" over the Citizenship Amendment Act in the Malda and Murshidabad areas of the state, which have seen several protests since the contentious bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament.

In a notice issued by the commission on Tuesday, Chief Secretary Alok Kumar has also been asked to probe the injuries to 27 protestors in baton-charge by the police. The chief secretary has been asked to submit a report within a month "after enquiring into the incidents to find out the circumstances" leading to the injuries, deaths, arrests and detentions.

The Assam Human Rights Commission has directed the chief secretary to constitute a high-level panel for probing deaths of five protesters in police action during protests over the Citizenship Amendment Act last week.

"There are efforts to silence the voices of around 800 students. I have come here to lend my face as their podium and my vocal cords as their microphone. I will keep voicing (objections) regardless of whether I have started a political party or not. Now that I have a party, it becomes my duty to be here and voice. All over India, these kind of voices are rising, and you cannot silence them," he said to reporters.

Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) chief and actor Kamal Haasan met the students of the Madras University in Chennai who are protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act for the last two days.

The Manithaneya Makkal Katchi party held a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act outside the residence of Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Wednesday.

According to a statement issued by the Kashmir Press Club, two journalists, who were covering a student protest against the amended Citizenship Act on Tuesday, were targeted by Superintendent of Police (north city) Sajad Shah and his subordinate Rashid Khan even when they disclosed their identity.

Journalists in Srinagar protested on Wednesday against the alleged police action on their colleagues while they were covering a student protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act. Carrying placards, the media persons assembled outside the office of the Directorate of Information and Public Relations in the city and called for an end to their harassment while discharging their duties.

"The court observed that there is reasonable apprehension that he might indulge in similar behaviour if released at this stage which could not be conducive to maintenance of peace and harmony," the report said.

A Delhi court on Wednesday dismissed the bail petition of one of the accused in the Jamia violence case, Mohammad Hanif, News18 reported.

The protesters targeted the police with stones and the police used mild force to disperse them, according to video footage from the protest. "Based on the video footage, police have identified 30 people and a case has been registered against them. Ten people have been detained at the Mubarakpur police station," Singh said.

Police said that some students of Jamia Ashrafia University and locals held a protest on Tuesday evening in the Mubarakpur police station area against the changes in citizenship amendment act. They said the protestors raised slogans and police teams rushed there to control the situation but they were allegedly subjected to brick-batting.

A protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act on Tuesday turned violent in Uttar Pradesh's Azamgarh, with police using mild force to disperse the agitators who hurled stones at them, prompting authorities to suspend Internet services for 48 hours, PTI reported.

Chief ministers of several states like West Bengal, Punjab, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh have said they will not implement the law.

"The bill to this effect has been passed by Parliament, the President has given his assent, it is law now for the whole country, so it is applicable to Karnataka also," Bommai said.

State home minister Basavaraj Bommai had said on Tuesday that for "political reasons" several state governments have taken divergent views on the CAA's implementation, "but taking the constitutional position Karnataka will implement it."

Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa on Wednesday declared that his government will "hundred percent" implement the Citizenship Amendment Act. "Hundred percent we will implement," he told reporters at Hubballi in north Karnataka in response to a question regarding the implementation of the CAA.

"However, the protest should not veer off the path of peace," he said. "We must ensure we remain in our senses while trying to maintain the same level of energy."

Addressing a large gathering of protesters outside the university's gate number 7, Kumar said the National Register of Citizens was "much more dangerous" than the amended Citizenship Act and it should be protested "tooth and nail".

Former JNU student's union president Kanhaiya Kumar joined the protest outside Jamia Millia Islamia on Wednesday and said the demonstration was not just a fight to protect Muslims, but to protect the entire country.

The delegation was not allowed as it might further worsen the situation in those areas, which have been limping back to normalcy after four days of constant violence.

The two BJP lawmakers were arrested when they tried to visit the violence-hit areas of the Malda district, the report said.

BJP MPs Nishith Pramanik and Khagen Murmu were arrested on Wednesday, as police stopped two delgations led by the party leaders which were on their way to visit violence-hit areas of Malda and Murshidabad districts, PTI reported.

"We had already said that this will be difficult to implement, so Puducherry will also toe the line of Punjab and Madhya Pradesh," he said.

Puducherry chief minister V Narayanasamy also rejected the Citizenship Amendment Act and on Wednesday said that it will not be implemented in the Union Territory.

PTI has quoted the police as saying that three ABVP workers were injured in an attack allegedly by SFI activists for organising a college seminar in favour of the Citizenship Amendment Act in Kerala

Kamal Haasan, Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) met the students of Madras University in Chennai who are holding protest against #CitizenshipAmendmentAct . #TamilNadu pic.twitter.com/65PFgcE4nO

"There are efforts to silence the voices of around 800 students. I have come here to lend my face as their podium and my vocal cords as their microphone. I will keep voicing (objections) regardless of whether I have started a political party or not. Now that I have a party, it becomes my duty to be here and voice. All over India, these kind of voices are rising, and you cannot silence them," he said to reporters.

Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) chief and actor Kamal Haasan met the students of the Madras University in Chennai who are protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act for the last two days.

The Manithaneya Makkal Katchi party held a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act outside the residence of Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Wednesday.

According to a statement issued by the Kashmir Press Club, two journalists, who were covering a student protest against the amended Citizenship Act on Tuesday, were targeted by Superintendent of Police (north city) Sajad Shah and his subordinate Rashid Khan even when they disclosed their identity.

Journalists in Srinagar protested on Wednesday against the alleged police action on their colleagues while they were covering a student protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act. Carrying placards, the media persons assembled outside the office of the Directorate of Information and Public Relations in the city and called for an end to their harassment while discharging their duties.

"The court observed that there is reasonable apprehension that he might indulge in similar behaviour if released at this stage which could not be conducive to maintenance of peace and harmony," the report said.

A Delhi court on Wednesday dismissed the bail petition of one of the accused in the Jamia violence case, Mohammad Hanif, News18 reported.

The protesters targeted the police with stones and the police used mild force to disperse them, according to video footage from the protest. "Based on the video footage, police have identified 30 people and a case has been registered against them. Ten people have been detained at the Mubarakpur police station," Singh said.

Police said that some students of Jamia Ashrafia University and locals held a protest on Tuesday evening in the Mubarakpur police station area against the changes in citizenship amendment act. They said the protestors raised slogans and police teams rushed there to control the situation but they were allegedly subjected to brick-batting.

A protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act on Tuesday turned violent in Uttar Pradesh's Azamgarh, with police using mild force to disperse the agitators who hurled stones at them, prompting authorities to suspend Internet services for 48 hours, PTI reported.

Chief ministers of several states like West Bengal, Punjab, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh have said they will not implement the law.

"The bill to this effect has been passed by Parliament, the President has given his assent, it is law now for the whole country, so it is applicable to Karnataka also," Bommai said.

State home minister Basavaraj Bommai had said on Tuesday that for "political reasons" several state governments have taken divergent views on the CAA's implementation, "but taking the constitutional position Karnataka will implement it."

Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa on Wednesday declared that his government will "hundred percent" implement the Citizenship Amendment Act. "Hundred percent we will implement," he told reporters at Hubballi in north Karnataka in response to a question regarding the implementation of the CAA.

"However, the protest should not veer off the path of peace," he said. "We must ensure we remain in our senses while trying to maintain the same level of energy."

Addressing a large gathering of protesters outside the university's gate number 7, Kumar said the National Register of Citizens was "much more dangerous" than the amended Citizenship Act and it should be protested "tooth and nail".

Former JNU student's union president Kanhaiya Kumar joined the protest outside Jamia Millia Islamia on Wednesday and said the demonstration was not just a fight to protect Muslims, but to protect the entire country.

The delegation was not allowed as it might further worsen the situation in those areas, which have been limping back to normalcy after four days of constant violence.

The two BJP lawmakers were arrested when they tried to visit the violence-hit areas of the Malda district, the report said.

BJP MPs Nishith Pramanik and Khagen Murmu were arrested on Wednesday, as police stopped two delgations led by the party leaders which were on their way to visit violence-hit areas of Malda and Murshidabad districts, PTI reported.

"We had already said that this will be difficult to implement, so Puducherry will also toe the line of Punjab and Madhya Pradesh," he said.

Puducherry chief minister V Narayanasamy also rejected the Citizenship Amendment Act and on Wednesday said that it will not be implemented in the Union Territory.

PTI has quoted the police as saying that three ABVP workers were injured in an attack allegedly by SFI activists for organising a college seminar in favour of the Citizenship Amendment Act in Kerala

Citizenship Amendment Act protests LATEST updates: Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) chief and actor Kamal Haasan met the students of the Madras University in Chennai who are protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act for the last two days.

"There are efforts to silence the voices of around 800 students. I have come here to lend my face as their podium and my vocal cords as their microphone. I will keep voicing (objections) regardless of whether I have started a political party or not. Now that I have a party, it becomes my duty to be here and voice. All over India, these kind of voices are rising, and you cannot silence them," he said to reporters.

India Today reported that he was not allowed inside the campus.

West Bengal governor J Dhankhar on Wednesday said that he was "pained" by the "deep sense of fear" over the Citizenship Amendment Act in the Malda and Murshidabad areas of the state, which have seen several protests since the contentious bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament.

In criticism of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's objection and resistance against the Act, Dhankar said, "An elected government is fully bound by the law of the land. The chief minister (Mamata Banerjee) took an oath to act according to the Constitution, and this law (Citizenship Amendment Act ) is part of the Constitution."

"The Citizenship Amendment Act has nothing to do with Indian citizens, it deals only with foreigners," Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik said while reiterating the BJD's support for the contentious law against which nationwide protests have broken out for almost 10 days.

However, the party chief said that all MPs of the party in both Houses had "made it clear" that they didn't support the National Register of Citizens (NRC), which is the exercise that is being paired with the CAA by critics of the law which will allow non-Muslim refugees of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh to apply for Indian citizenship.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee hit the streets for the third consecutive day against the amended citizenship law and NRC. Accompanied by thousands of people, Banerjee began the protest march from Howrah Maidan which will culminate at Dorina Crossing at Esplanade in the heart of Kolkata. "We will never allow NRC and the amended Citizenship Act in Bengal. No one will be asked to leave the state," she said.

She asked Shah to ensure that the country does not burn over the amended citizenship law, adding that his job is to “douse the fire”. “BJP says they aim at ‘Sabka saath, sabka vikas’ (everyone’s development), but in reality, what they have done is ‘sabke saath sarvanash’ (everyone’s destruction),” she said. Asking Shah to control his party cadres and blaming the BJP of wanting to turn the entire country into a detention centre, Mamata said that she will not let this happen.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami defended his party's support to the amendment to the Citizenship Act in Parliament saying the law will not affect any Indian, to whichever religion one may belong.

JD(U) chief HD Kumaraswamy said that his party opposes both the Citizenship Act and National Register of Citizens. Congress' UT Khader said that while the country is in flames, Karnataka is an island of peace. He warned that if the Act is implemented in Karnataka, the state will be "blown up into cinders".

Renowned Urdu humourist and writer Mujtaba Hussain announced returning of Padma Shri award to the government in protest against Citizenship Amendement Act.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal denied the BJP's accusation regarding the Aam Aadmi Party government's failure in maintaining law and order in the national capital. He said that only those fearing defeat in the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections are inciting riots.

DMK chief MK Stalin said that all Opposition parties will hold a protest in Chennai against the Citizenship Act on 23 December. Speaking to reporters after an all-party meeting held at the DMK headquarters and chaired by him, Stalin said that the parties called for the revocation of the law.

BJD, which voted in favor of the Citizenship Amendment Bill in the Parliament, will not support NRC in Odisha, said Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. He clarified that Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs had clarified in the Houses that while the Citizenship Act deals with foreigners, NRC deals with Indian citizens

BSP MP Satish Chandra Mishra, after meeting President Ram Nath Kovind, said that the delegation of party leaders urged the latter to revoke Citizenship Act, which is in violation of Articles 14 and 21.

The Maharashtra Assembly witnessed an uproar when the opposition BJP objected to senior Congress leader Ashok Chavan's comments that the amended Citizenship Act should not be implemented in the state. Protest against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens outside Jamia Millia Islamia University entered the third day.

The Delhi High Court agreed to hear a PIL seeking the setting up of a fact- finding committee to look into the recent violence at Jamia Milia Islamia University. It also sought proper medical treatment and compensation for the injured students.

Guwahati Peasants’ leader​ Akhil Gogoi was brought to the NIA headquarters on Tuesday night. Gogoi, arrested under the stringent UAPA amid protests over the citizenship law, was sent to 10-day NIA custody. Curfew was relaxed for 14 hours in Shillong on Wednesday even as the ban on mobile internet services remained in force.

The Supreme Court of India has issued a notice to Centre as it admitted a bunch of petitions challenging the Citizenshp Amendment Act. The court has, however, refused to stay the law as enacted by the Parliament.

Kafeel Khan, the doctor who hit the headlines in Gorakhpur after the death of 60 children in the BRD hospital in 2017, has now been booked for allegedly giving a provocative speech at the open talk in Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) on the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.

Six people have been arrested by the Delhi Police in connection with the incident of violence and stone-pelting in Seelampur on Tuesday, ANI reported. Raids are being conducted to apprehend some other people who have also been identified. Delhi Police had filed three FIRs in connection with the violence in Jaffrabad and Brijpuri.

No fresh incident of violence over amended citizenship law was reported in West Bengal, police said. However, a senior police officer and two other personnel were injured when a group of agitators hurled crude bombs at them in Sankrail area of Howrah district on Tuesday night.

Former Congress MLA Asif Khan has been named as an accused in the FIR for his alleged involvement in the Jamia Millia Islamia incident that took place on 15 December.

The recently enacted Citizenship Amendment Act will adversely impact people of Assam and the northeast, an association representing the Assamese community in North America said. In a letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Assam Association of North America urged that the Assam Accord of 1985 be implemented in its entirety, where it should prevail over the Act in case of any conflict.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee would lead two more rallies against the amended Citizenship Act in Kolkata on Thursday and Friday. Meanwhile, the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union claimed that a police post was being set up in the varsity's premises and that police personnel were entering campus like they had done at Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University.

Slamming the BJP-led central government over the Citizenship Act and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said that if the NRC is implemented, then he will be the first person not to sign it.​ On the other hand, Shahi Imam of Delhi's Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari clarified the Citizenship Act has nothing to do with the Muslims living in India.

Sharing a video of a stone-pelting incident in Delhi, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh asked if Home Minister Amit Shah gave the cops the permission to so the same. He criticised the government for pelting stones, when that is what they criticised the Kashmiris for.

Petitions against Citizenship Amendment Act will come up for hearing in Supreme Court at around 11.30 am. The petitions have been filed by various political parties, including Congress, Indian Union Muslim League and Trinamool Congress. Former bureaucrats, NGOs and students are among the other petitioners.

Violent clashes broke out in the Delhi on Tuesday as students, Opposition leaders and activists across the country stepped up their protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019, even as the government asserted it is "firm" on the implementation of the contentious law, and the Supreme Court refused a plea to set up an inquiry panel to probe the violence.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the "Congress and its friends" of spreading lies over the new law and asked students to try and analyse whether they were being made accomplices in a "conspiracy" where "urban Naxals" and others were “using their shoulders” to serve their own interests.

As fresh protests erupted across campuses and on streets in various regions and several Opposition parties demanded the withdrawal of what they called an "unconstitutional and divisive" law, Home Minister Amit Shah said there was no question of going back on its implementation and expressed confidence about the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) standing legal scrutiny.

"We are as firm as a rock on its implementation," he said.

Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi on #CitizenshipAmendmentAct: Aapko jo rajnitik virodh karna hai wo karo, Bharatiya Janata Party ki Modi sarkar firm hai. Ye sabhi sharanarthiyo ko nagrikata milegi, vo Bharat ke nagrik banenge aur samman ke sath duniya me rahenge. pic.twitter.com/JKyTbDMx4K — ANI (@ANI) December 17, 2019

Shah also said action being taken only against those engaging in vandalism and arson during protests and not against students opposing the CAA. He also directed Delhi Police to ensure peace in the National Capital.

According to police, at least 29 people have been arrested for violent clashes over the last couple of days in Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) and in parts of Uttar Pradesh, while two FIRs were registered in connection with Tuesday's violence during a protest in Delhi’s Seelampur and Jafrabad areas that left 21 people, including 12 policemen, injured.

Reportedly, protesters in Seelampur torched motorbikes, pelted stones at police personnel and damaged buses and a police booth, while police resorted to baton charge and fired tear gas shells to disperse the protesters. The situation was brought under control after a stand-off that continued for about one-and-a-half hour, police officials said, while blaming the clashes on a "hidden mob" that swelled to 4,000 to 5,000 people.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, BJP's East Delhi MP Gautam Gambhir and Seelampur's AAP MLA Haji Ishraq appealed to people to maintain peace and distance themselves from violence.

Delhi: Police take away protesters from the spot in Jafrabad area where a clash broke out between police and protesters, during protest against #CitizenshipAmendmentAct today. Police has also used tear gas shells to disperse the protesters. pic.twitter.com/GU5mzV0dKm — ANI (@ANI) December 17, 2019

Braving the winter temperatures, thousands of people poured into the streets near Jamia Millia Islamia for a peaceful protest. Holding the Tricolour and placards, they raised slogans like "Azaadi (freedom) from atrocities" and formed human chains, while some women-led groups took out marches in the narrow lanes of nearby residential areas.

Schoolchildren held out placards saying "we want justice" as their buses drove through the area.

Delhi: Students of Jamia Millia Islamia gather outside the university in protest against #CitizenshipAmendmentAct pic.twitter.com/48mAGfxiAo — ANI (@ANI) December 17, 2019

A group of injured Jamia Millia Islamia students also held a press conference along with some activists and alleged "barbaric" beatings, abuse, and humiliation by the police during their crackdown on those protesting against the new law on Sunday.

Addressing a press conference along with some activists, one Jamia student said he had been beaten "mercilessly" when he was studying in the library along with 25 others, including 10-12 girls, while several others also alleged that many were injured in the police action in Jamia as well as in Uttar Pradesh’s Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).

Jamia vice-chancellor Najma Akhtar on Tuesday sent a report to the Human Resource Development Ministry detailing the sequence of events about the police action in campus, PTI reported, adding that no formal request has been received for ordering a high-level inquiry.

On Tuesday, despite nationwide protests, the Supreme Court declined to set up a committee of a retired apex court judge to inquire into the incidents of violence in different parts of the country since Sunday and asked the petitioners to approach respective high courts.

The police said it has arrested 10 people with criminal background for Sunday's violence near Jamia Millia Islamia, but none of them are students. The police had on Sunday detained around 50 students, who were released later.

The university had virtually turned into a battlefield on Sunday as police entered the campus and also used force, leading to violence and arson in which four DTC buses, 100 private vehicles and 10 police bikes were damaged.

A senior MHA official said the police did not fire any bullet on protesters near Jamia on Sunday, but an empty cartridge was found in the area.

Under the new citizenship law, all but Muslims who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till 31 December 2014, can be given Indian citizenship.

Protests are being held across the country ever since the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019, was introduced in the Parliament earlier this month for this law.

A section of the students of the Madras University also continued their protest for the second day on Tuesday against the amendment to the Citizenship Act, even as police entered the campus.

Chennai: Students hold protest in Madras University over #CitizenshipAmendmentAct. pic.twitter.com/xNpZ2s8Gy5 — ANI (@ANI) December 17, 2019

Defiant students said they will continue their agitation "through the night".

While police personnel who entered the campus said they were for the "safety of the students", the protesters alleged two of the students were picked up by the police.

Police sources told PTI that two students have been called for questioning over allegedly inciting students of affiliated colleges to join the stir at the varsity's Marina campus.

The varsity, according to the about 50 protesting students, has declared holiday till 2 January.

"Today, they declared holiday till 23 December, the university is anyway scheduled to close for Christmas holidays from 24 December till 2 January... declaring a holiday now till 23 December is only to stifle our protest," one of the coordinators and a PG political science student, K Ragu Prasath told PTI.

The coordinator claimed that the two students are "under the custody of police".

Fresh protests took place on Tuesday in Kerala, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Maharashtra, West Bengal and several other parts of the country as well.

In Hyderabad, students from the Osmania University and the Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) held protests against CAA and police action in Jamia Milia Islamia. They raised slogans against the BJP government and Delhi Police like, "We want Justice", "Want Democracy, Not Dictatorship", among others.

In Gujarat, protesters gathered outside the Sabarmati Ashram with anti-CAA placards.

In Kerala, stones were hurled at state transport buses, shops were forcibly closed and protest marches were held in support of a dawn-to-dusk hartal, while over 200 people were taken into preventive custody.

In Tamil Nadu, DMK president MK Stalin called the new law "hasty and autocratic" and alleged the BJP-led Centre's objective was not India's progress but trampling the rights of Muslims.

The curfew was lifted in Assam’s Guwahati following an improvement in the law and order situation. Curfew was relaxed in Shillong too.

In West Bengal, protesters blocked roads and railway tracks. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, in a rally on Tuesday, said that the BJP cannot bully the states into enforcing the law.

In Uttar Pradesh, officials said 26 people, including eight students, were arrested in connection with the AMU violence, have been released on personal bonds.

However, 19 people were arrested in the Mau area of the state for violence on Monday night after the police action in Jamia. On Tuesday, scattered protests were held in the state with no report of any violence. The police have detained 113 people for allegedly trying to vitiate atmosphere with their posts on social media.

Opposition leaders also knocked on the doors of President Ram Nath Kovind urging him to intervene on the issue of violence in central universities and advised the Modi government to withdraw the "unconstitutional and divisive" citizenship amendment law.

Sonia Gandhi: The situation in the Northeast which is now spreading throughout country including the capital because of the act, is a very serious situation, we fear that it may spread even further.We're anguished at the manner in which police dealt with peaceful demonstration. https://t.co/nzx0InFcFZ pic.twitter.com/Vuu9CCHNP5 — ANI (@ANI) December 17, 2019

Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who led the delegation, alleged the Modi government was "shutting down" people's voices and bringing legislations which are not acceptable to them.

Separately addressing a meet of vice-chancellors and directors of central universities, Kovind asked them to ensure that higher educational institutes emerge as spaces that nurture free expression and ideas. The government officials maintained that the situation in 42 central universities, except the two, was peaceful.

Meanwhile, BJP and ABVP workers also staged demonstrations at some places to support the new law.