Left to hold nationwide protest against CAB on Dec 19

Five Left parties - CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML) L, Forward Bloc and RSP - will organise nationwide protests on December 19 against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill cleared by Parliament, saying it is violative of the Constitution and destroys the secular foundation of the country.

In a joint statement, the parties said they "strongly oppose" this Bill that "links citizenship with the religious affiliation of an individual, the very antithesis of secularism".

Describing the Bill as "completely violative of the Indian Constitution and aimed at destroying the secular democratic foundations of the Indian Republic", the party said it aims to "further sharpen the communal divide and social polarisation" in the country, which is "dangerously detrimental to the unity and integrity" of India.

"The passage of this Bill, along with the proclamations by this Modi-Shah BJP government to extend the National Register of Citizens (NRC) to the entire country, is the twin combination to change the character of the Indian Republic - from a secular democratic one into a Hindutva Rashtra, the RSS political project," the statement said.

In the statement, signed by CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury and his counterparts D Raja (CPI), Dipankar Bhattacharya (CPIMLL) and Debabrata Biswas (Forward Bloc) and RSP's Manoj Bhattacharya, the party asked its units all over the country to organize actions against the CAB-NRC.

The parties chose December 19 because it was on the same day in 1927 when Ram Prasad Bismil, who rendered the "stirring patriotic" call 'Sarfiaoshi Ki Tamanna' was hanged at the Gorakhpur jail. Ashfaqulla Khan, a co-accused, was hanged at the Faizabad jail and another co-accused Roshan Singh was hanged at the Naini jail, it said.

"This unity, overriding religious affiliations won India its freedom from the British. Today, it is being ruptured by the RSS-BJP," it added.