BENGALURU: Thousands of Muslims gathered at the Idgah Grounds in Chamarajpet to protest against the Citizen Amendment Act (CAA), in response to the call by Congress legislator and former minister BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan. Addressing the protesters, Zameer Khan said, “More than 700 Muslims died during the struggle for Independence, and we had made it clear during Partition that we will live and die in this land, so we strongly oppose this religion-based CAA and we can’t accept it.
Before asking us for details about our forefathers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah should show their own documents as proof. “I’m a four-time MLA and two-time minister. It took me four months to get my certificates. I want to ask the PM Modi and Shah, if they have certificates of their fathers and grandfathers. Let them get their certificates first and then we will provide ours,” he said.
Freedom fighter HS Doreswamy too joined in the protest. “We are not Muslims or Hindus. We are all Indians and we are fighting today as Indians,” he said. Traffic was affected at JC Road and Corporation Circle.
No room for opposition, says Reddy; defends ‘puncturewallah’ comment by Surya, says illiterate people misguided by literates
Ballari
Ballari MLA Gali Somashekhar Reddy on Friday stoked controversy by issuing veiled threats to the Muslim community, for reservation against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).At a rally here on Friday in support of CAA and National Register of Citizens (NRC), Somashekhar called for unity among Hindus in favour of the Act and warned those agitating against it of serious consequences. Since the Act was passed by Parliament, where is the room for opposing it, he asked.
He said that some misguided Muslim members of the party were also expressing apprehension that they would be sent out of the country. The MLA also dragged family planning into his speech, saying, “If Muslims can give birth to 20-30 babies, Hindus would also deliver 50 babies.” He also defended the ‘puncturewallah’ comment by Bangalore South MP Tejasvi Surya, saying that these are illiterate people being misguided by the literate, so they are coming out on the streets. He also warned that if any untoward incident occurs during CAA protests, the consequences would be dangerous.
Cautioning anti-CAA protesters, the MLA said that only 5 per cent of the people have attended these rallies. If the other 95 per cent come out, the protesters would vanish. He also warned protesters not to test the patience of Hindus.