As of 16 December 2019, protests in response to the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) are ongoing across India, including in the capital New Delhi, along with the cities of Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kolkata. On 16 December protesters gathered at universities across the country to express solidarity with students of New Delhi’s Jamia Millia Islamia university and Aligarh Muslim University, located in Uttar Pradesh state, after police officers clashed with protesters on the premises of these universities the previous day. In Lucknow, the state capital of Uttar Pradesh, clashes broke out at the Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama after student protesters threw stones at police officers; there were no immediate reports of injuries. Separately, police officers forcefully dispersed protesters gathered at Delhi University. Officials have shut down at least six metro stations in New Delhi in view of the ongoing protests.
On 15 December violent clashes broke out on the premises of Jamia Millia Islamia university as several thousand students gathered to protest the CAB. Police officers deployed tear gas and conducted baton charges to disperse the students, who had set fire to public buses, damaged campus property and thrown projectiles at officers. According to university officials, at least 200 student protesters were injured during the clashes.
Elsewhere in India, protesters blocked major roads and railways in Assam and West Bengal states. In response to the widespread violence, internet services in the northeastern states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Tripura has been suspended until further notice. Meanwhile, on 14 December protesters in these states blocked several roads and railways, and vandalized dozens of buses and at least six railway stations. At least six people have been killed in protest-related violence since anit-CAB protests initially began in Assam state on 12 December.
