Opposition Leaders Detained, Communication Lockdown In Delhi As Protests Over CAA Intensify: 10 Points

Voice, Mobile Internet, and SMS services were blocked in parts of Delhi as protests over the "divisive" Citizenship Amendment Act intensified in the national capital, with thousands of people defying prohibitory orders and gathering at historic Red Fort and Mandi House. The police have detained hundreds of protesters, including prominent Opposition leaders like Sitaram Yechury, Brinda Karat, Prakash Karat, Yogendra Yadav and Umar Khalid. Metro gates at as many as 17 stations were shut in wake of protestst that turned violent on Tuesday.

Below are the 10 key points on Citizenship Act Protests:

1. Internet, voice and messaging services by telecom service providers including Airtel, Vodafone Idea and Reliance Jio were suspended in parts of Delhi-NCR following instructions from the police on Thursday. As per the order, services were suspended for locations including walled city areas of north and central districts, Mandi House, Seelampur, Jaffarbad, Mustafabad, Jamia Nagar, Shaheen Bagh and Bawana.
2. Several protesters including Left leaders Sitaram Yechury, D Raja, activist Yogendra Yadav and historian Ramchandra Guha were detained for taking part in anti-citizenship law stir defying prohibitory orders. The agitators were put into buses in a bid to clear the Red Fort area. Holding placards and shouting slogans, the protesters allowed themselves to be escorted to the buses. Swarajya Abhiyan chief Yogendra Yadav was among those detained.
3. Protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act resulted in huge traffic snarls across the national capital during the morning peak hours, with the Delhi-Gurgaon route virtually choked with vehicles.
4. Entry and exit gates of several metro stations have been closed in view of a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act. Gates of Jamia Millia Islamia, Jasola Vihar Shaheen Bagh, Munirka, Patel Chowk, Lok Kalyan Marg, Udyog Bhawan, ITO, Pragati Maidan and Khan Market, Barakhamba Road, Vasant Vihar and Mandi House have been closed and trains at these stations will not halt.
5. West Bengal, Assam and Meghalaya were peaceful on Thursday while agitators blocked rail and road traffic during a bandh called by Left-wing student organisations in Bihar against the new citizenship law. Train services were affected and roads blocked during a bandh called by Left parties in Bihar.
6. Section 144, which bars gathering of four or more people, has been imposed in Uttar Pradesh since November 9, just before the verdict on the Ayodhya land dispute case was heard. "Sec 144 is in force and no permission for any gathering has been given for 19.12.19..." the UP Police chief tweeted.
7. In Kolkata, where Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who too held protests marches against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has criticised the government for detention of prominent people, who were peacefully protesting against the CAA. 
8. "This government is scared of students. This government is scared of one of India's most accomplished historians for speaking to the media on CAB, NRC and holding a poster of GandhiJi. I condemn the detention of Ram Guha. We extend our full solidarity to all those detained," Mamata Banerjee said.
9. The Citizenship Amendment Act grants Indian citizenship to undocumented migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who are not Muslims and came to India before or on December 31, 2014.
10. The Opposition claims that giving citizenship on religiousn grounds and excluding a particular community from it is a violation of constitutional ethos. The government, on the other hand, has refused to relent and said there is no question of taking it back.