TMC to hold mass protests against NRC across state

Kolkata: The Trinamool Congress leadership on Monday decided to hold mass protest movement across all blocks in the state on September 7 and 8 respectively, opposing the NRC in neighbouring Assam.

The decision was taken at an emergency meeting at Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's residence. All the MPs, ministers and district presidents were in attendance. It was learnt that Banerjee had expressed concern over the omission of the names of 19 lakh people and the ongoing economic slump in the country. She told the gathering that a fear psychosis has been created throughout the country in the name of NRC.

On September 12 a protest rally will also be organised in the city from Chiria More to Shyambazar in North Kolkata.

TMC Lok Sabha party leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay has been assigned to keep in touch with leaders of other regional parties across the country on the issue.

Shortly after publication of the NRC list, Banerjee had tweeted criticizing the Centre. She wrote: "The NRC fiasco has exposed all those who tried to take political mileage out of it. They have a lot to answer to the nation. This is what happens when an act is guided by an ulterior motive rather than the good of the society and the larger interest of the nation."

It may be recalled that when the draft NRC was published in March, Banerjee had sent a six-member team to Assam to meet those who had been left out of the list. The team comprised Firhad Hakim, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Mohua Moitra and Mamatabala Thakur among others. The Assam government did not allow the team to meet the affected people and did not allow them to go out of the airport. Later, they came back to the city without meeting anyone.