Students, members of various outfits take out anti-CAA march

Students and member of various organisations on Monday took out a protest march against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the proposed National Register of Citizen (NRC) here.

The march started from FTII (Film and Television Institute of India), located off Law College Road, and culminated outside the Bal Gandharva auditorium on JM Road, covering a distance of around 3km in the evening.

Students from FTII, the Savitribai Phule Pune University, various colleges and members ofseveral youth outfits participated in the march.

The protesters marched holding placards with messages such as 'Donate A Book To The Needy, Name - Amit Shah, Book Name - Constitution', 'App Chronology Samaj Lijiye' Pahle CAA aur NRC Jayenge, Phir Modi aur Shah Jayenge', and shouting slogans denouncing the CAA and the NRC.

The protest was latest in a series of demonstrations held in the city since the new citizenship law was passed by Parliament in mid-December.

The CAA seeks to grant citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Parsis and Jain refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who entered India on or before December 31, 2014.

The new citizenship law's passage in Parliament triggered nationwide protests, which turned violent at some places, including in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

To counter such protests, the BJP has launched its own nationwide pro-CAA drive.

CAA's critics say the law is discriminatory and violates the core values of the Constitution.