Life has been disrupted in Assam with a 12-hour bandh (shutdown) called on Tuesday by 46 organisations across the state, protesting against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
As a part of bandh, protesters tried to put up blockades on railway tracks in order to disrupt train services across Assam.
According to the Police officials, the demonstrators, who were trying to prevent train movement by sitting on tracks, were being evicted.
Demonstrators also burnt tyres on roads at various places of the state, the police said.
Police escorts were provided to public transport vehicles to ensure transport services functioned normally during the shutdown.
The Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) and other 44 organisations have called the 12-hour shutdown to protest against the Centre’s bid to pass the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, in the Winter Session of Parliament.
The state government has already ordered all government departments to ensure that offices remain open and all employees report for duty.
Meanwhile, heavy security has been deployed across the state and the government has ordered the police of all districts to take every appropriate measure to maintain the law and order situation.
The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016 was introduced in the Lok Sabha to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to grant Indian citizenship to Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Christians and Parsis who fled religious persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan and entered India before December 31, 2014.
