CAA protests: Pro and anti rallies held in Mumbai

Mumbai, Dec 27: Students and social activists Have gathered at the Azad Maidan in south Mumbai to protest against the Citizenship Act, four kilometres away, at the August Kranti Maidan, while hundreds have turned up in support of the law that for the first time makes religion the test of citizenship in India.

The protesters gathered at the Azad Maidan in south Mumbai and gave slogans against the government. They carried banners decrying the Modi government over the move.

"This is a authoritarian regime. It thinks they can do anything. It is this government's responsibility to protect and not oppose the Constitution," Nikita Pathak, a student, said.

Another protester said this was a "faceless government", adding the Act is aimed "not against just one community but against the whole country.

The pro-Citizenship Act rally at August Kranti Maidan is being led by BJP leader and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

Meanwhile, police detained over 350 protesters including women who tried to stage a demonstration outside the Uttar Pradesh Bhawan here on Friday against alleged police brutalities in the state following agitations over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

The \RJamia Coordination Committee, which comprises students from various political groups active on the campus, had called for a "gherao" of the UP Bhawan, where prohibitory orders were clamped under section 144 of CrPC.