What Are The North Eastern Universities’ Students Saying About CAA 2019?

The North Eastern Universities’ Students’ Fraternity Unites as One against Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019

19.01.2020

Tezpur

The students’ fraternity of the North Eastern Universities along with various other organisations gathered at Bhupen Hazarika Kalabhumi, Tezpur to stage a massive protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019.

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The main objective of the meet was to create a common platform among the universities across Northeast who are actively protesting against Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019. The meeting highlighted the peculiarity of the north-eastern region in relation to the draconian Act. The narrative which has emerged in the region focuses on a different ground of discrimination faced by the indigenous people in the eight states in the periphery.

That the continuous influx of ‘illegal immigrants’ has rendered us hopeless had been addressed. Not only does the Act pose a threat to the indigenous cultures of the Northeast, but it also seeks to curb our right to actively dissent and express our fear. The student representatives came to an agreement that although they stand in solidarity with the protests going on in the mainland India they demand solidarity of the nation to understand the concern of the Northeast and the valid concerns of the many communities. They condemned the police atrocities on the students, both inside and outside the college and university campuses.

Terming the protest as a political and intellectual movement, the students’ fraternity in its charter of demands prepared a list of resolutions with reference to the present social, cultural, political and economic environment of the country. The following resolutions were passed unanimously by the students’ fraternity to be met by the State and the Central Governments-

1. All universities should incorporate the interest of upholding a strong solidarity towards the larger issues of the North eastern states and should bestow their interest of working unitedly towards the fulfilment of the stated resolutions.
2. The amalgamation of the voices from the North-eastern universities not only represent the institutions rather each single voice represents the each single state of the North Eastern region, so as a United voice from the northeast, we would like to draw the concern of the central government to respect the constitutional rights of the states of India and would like to appeal to maintain a federal structure while implementing any state policies other than inculcating an unitary approach while forming such policies.
3. The immediate abrogation of citizenship amendment act 2019 without failure.
4. Implementation of the Assam Accord and clause 6 of Assam Accord without any amendments and further delay.
5. The continuous raising of the voices for the abolition of CAA 19 should not convey any such misleading interpretation as the motive of the protest it is only for the safeguarding of the indigenous rights but not against any religious communities.
6. An appeal for the comprehensive land recording of the real state or real property’s metes and bounds of the country for the legal establishment or reestablishment of real property boundaries and ensuring constitutional safeguarding of the indigenous people of the state in terms of land rights, employment and policy benefits.
7. Establishment of inner line permit as an Act under the constitution of India for the entire North Eastern states.
8. In view of recent incidents of violence against students on campus, administration of for universities must declare that Police will not be allowed to enter campus without consultations with students.
9. To demand our respective institutions to declare themselves as welfare universities that committed themselves to increasing enrolment and recruitment from the most exploited sections of society. This will include measures such as providing scholarships, provision for remedial classes and creating a non-discriminatory friendly environment on campus.
10. To meet the students, demand on roll back of fees hike ok in government and public funded educational institutions.
11. The various State board of education must arrest the deadline in the quality of education being provided in the vernacular language schools of the region through improvement of infrastructure and address the problems of students and teachers alike. We condemn the gross irregularities in examination system and will not allow the government to destroy the failure of countless students over the years.
12. Following the common interest of the abolition of CAA’19, all the North-eastern universities’ students have been constantly incorporating their support to the movements raised by various organisations, voicing their opinions to the public forum, whereas certain organisations have failed to lend their support to the students of universities who have been facing troubles internally due to CAA’19 protest. in respect of that it is hereby appealed to all the organisations to lend their support to the students who have been working tirelessly for the same cause.
13. The demand to release of Akhil Gogoi, Bitu Sonowal, Dhoirjyo Knowar all other political prisoners protesting against citizenship Amendment act 2019.
14. Peaceful democratic protest against the CAA 19 must be handled in a dignified democratic manner. an urgent need of high-level enquiry into the unlawful, state sponsored violence on protestors.
15. Need of a clear refugee policy for India and sealing of porous Indo-Bangla border that has been largely responsible for the vexed issue of illegal immigration threatening the indigenous and ethnic identities of the NE region.
16. We demand that the state governments must increase spending to protect language and cultures whose existence is being threatened by modernization.
17. There will be no formation of any student organization by the Northeastern Universities but only a platform to keep the coordination among each other. Rather we will be in solidarity with the prevailing student organizations that are and will be raising the voice for the betterment of the society.