Lashing out at the BJP- led NDA government at the Centre over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), Bhim Army chief Chandrasekhar Azad on Saturday said a democratic country runs according to the will of the people, not by the whims and fancies of the BJP and RSS.
Speaking at an anti-CAA rally here, Azad sought withdrawal of the "black law" and said the fight would continue till it is repealed and the central government expresses an apology. Addressing a massive protest here, Bhim Army chief read out the preamble to the Constitution of India to the crowd and said none would be taken to the detention centres.
"If someone has any false impression that this country can be run according to the whims and fancies of BJP and RSS, he or she is wrong. This is a democratic country and here things happen according to the will of the people," Azad said. Speaking at the protest meet, organised by the Socialist Democratic Party of India (SDPI), Azad said the beauty of the country lies in its diversity. "Our country Bharat is a great nation. The beauty of this country lies in its diversity. The unity in this diversity made our country. I can see that togetherness in Kerala today," he said.
Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Azad said, "The watchman of the house has started asking for proof from the owner." He said the people asked for development and a corruption-free government but "they made us protest in the streets. However, it is a good thing. Now, we all are standing together," Azad said. "Just like how we fought and declared at the historic steps of Juma Masjid in Delhi, I would like to say, no citizen, none of our brothers will be taken to any detention centres," Azad said.
The SDPI march began from Kozhikode on January 17 commemorating the martyrs day of Rohith Vemula and culminated here in front of Raj Bhavan. Vemula, a Ph.D. scholar at Hyderabad Central University, had allegedly committed suicide on January 17, 2016, following caste bias, "We will fight till this black law is repealed. We will continue our fight till the central government apologises for it," Azad said. He said the protest at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi has inspired the country to take forward the protest in a peaceful manner. "The people are in the streets protesting. Our sisters at Shaheen Bagh has inspired us, resulting in making of other Shaheen Baghs across the country, " he said. He said the government was "afraid of the protest" and was trying to stop the agitation by creating trouble.
"The government wants us to get violent. But they don't know that our biggest strength is our peaceful protest, which we will continue. We must stand together and uphold our rights granted by the Constitution and the courts, in a peaceful manner, Azad said. Besides Azad, lawyer Mehmood Pracha, SDPI leaders and others took part in the protest. Azad would attend another protest at Kodungaloor on Sunday.