We have faith that judiciary will do justice, say women waging silent war against CAA at Park Circus

Kolkata: Women agitating at Park Circus Maidan are waiting for justice post the Supreme Court hearing on the petitions challenging Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), scheduled for Wednesday.

"We have faith in judiciary. It will do justice. At first when we sat for the protest at Park Circus Maidan on January 7, the police asked us to leave the venue. We urged them to let us continue our indefinite peaceful protest and then they allowed us. On the first day, 60 women along with children stayed during the night at Park Circus Maidan, while the next day 300 women joined us. Our number now is more than 10,000. We also met Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on January 15 and she had supported our fight against CAA," said 45-year-old homemaker Asmat Jamil, organiser of the ongoing 'Swadhinata Andolan 2.0' at Park Circus Maidan.

The controversial Act, passed by both Houses of Parliament in December, seeks to provide Indian citizenship to non-Muslim refugees coming from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, after facing religious persecution there.

When asked why Muslim women are protesting against CAA and not men, Asmat said: "We got to know the implications of CAA from books, internet and social media. There is a misconception in the society that Muslim women are weak and only engaged in household chores. If you turn the pages of Islamic History then you will find that women had fought the battle of Karbala, in which Prophet Mohammad's grandson Hussein was martyred. Today, women from different communities such as Hindu, Christian and Sikh have joined our protest."

"This is a fight against RSS and BJP. They are trying to divide India on the basis of religion. RSS should be banned in India. The BJP is following the British policy of 'divide and rule', but they won't be successful. Irrespective of caste and creed, we are joining the protest. It is in solidarity with the women of Delhi's Shaheen Bagh, where a similar women-led 24-hour sit-in is currently on. Professionals such as medicos, lawyers, teachers and professors have also joined us," said Barnali Mukherjee, a protester at the Park Circus Maidan.

It might be mentioned that Senior Congress leader and former Union minister P Chidambaram had also visited the ongoing anti-CAA stir last week.