The Post Graduate Students’ Union (PGSU) of Dibrugarh University decided to boycott classes for an indefinite period in protest against the Citizenship Bill, 2016.
“We have decided to boycott classes for an indefinite period in protest against the Bill because the Citizenship Bill is anti-Assamese and it will spell doom for the Assamese society. We demand scrapping of the Bill,” Mridul Gogoi, president of the PGSU said.
The students’ union in a joint statement appealed to the students of all the colleges under Dibrugarh University to boycott classes from Wednesday as a mark of protest against the Bill. There are 177 colleges and educational institutions affiliated to Dibrugarh University.
The DUPGSU condemned the BJP Government’s move to get the Bill passed in the Parliament. The Lok Sabha had passed the Bill by voice vote on Tuesday. The students’ body also decided that no supporters of the Bill including Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal will be allowed to set foot inside the Dibrugarh University campus.
Meanwhile Dibrugarh police have arrested 14 persons in connection with the attack on the BJP district office on Tuesday during the 11-hour Assam bandh.
The Dibrugarh district BJP unit had earlier filed an FIR at the Dibrugarh police station against the act of vandalism by some bandh supporters at their party office. The accused were booked under sections 147/148/149/436 of the IPC.
The Dibrugarh police had themselves registered a suo motu case under sections 120 (B)/147/148/149/341/353/333/436/427 of the IPC read with section 4 of Public Property Damage Act. Three policemen including Dibrugarh Additional SP Surjeet Singh Panesar were injured in the stone pelting by mob during the attack on the BJP party office.
The arrested persons were identified as Iqbal Ansari, Uttam Chetia, Bharati Hira Dutta, Silpi Saikia, Khagen Bora, Gauri Das, Pradip Sarkar, Ranak Gogoi, Udipta Rajkhowa, Indrajit Dutta, Hiren Phukan, Chandan Pandey, Bijoy Gogoi and Girindra Handique.