Protests against citizenship act: Curfew relaxed in Dibrugarh for 9 hours

The curfew which was imposed in the wake of protests over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, here has been relaxed from 7 am to 4 pm on Sunday.

Protests erupted in Dibrugarh and other parts of Assam following the passage of Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, in the Parliament on Wednesday, and it becoming an Act thereupon after the Presidential assent on Thursday.

As many as 26 Army columns have been deployed in Assam to assist the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) to handle the situation.

The Act seeks to grant Indian citizenship to refugees from Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and Zoroastrian communities fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh and who entered India on or before December 31, 2014.

On Saturday, internet services across Assam were suspended till December 16 to prevent alleged misuse of social media in disturbing the peace and to maintain law and order in the state, officials said.

Suspension of internet services has been extended for another 48 hours keeping in view the prevailing law and order situation in the state.

These services have been suspended as "social media platforms like Facebook, Whatsapp, Twitter and You Tube, etc are likely to be used for spreading of rumors and also for transmission of information like pictures, videos and texts that have the potential to inflame passions and does exacerbate the law and order situation".

Internet services were suspended on Wednesday initially for 24 hours in ten districts of the state and then extended for another 48 hours across the state, scheduled to expire this afternoon.

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