DIMAPUR, Nov 19 - The 18-hour shutdown in Nagaland called against the Citizenship Amendment Bill began at 6 pm today with shops and business establishments downing shutters all over the State. The shutdown will end at noon tomorrow.
There were no reports of any untoward incident during the initial period of the shutdown called by the Joint Committee for Prevention of Illegal Immigrants (JCPI) at the directive of the North East Forum for Indigenous Peoples (NEFIP), which is spearheading the movement against the citizenship Bill in the North East.
Sources said adequate security arrangements have been put into place all over the State to thwart any untoward incident. Though vehicular traffic and examinations have been exempted, the NEFIP and the JCPI, in a joint release on Tuesday, asked the public to stay indoors and the business establishments to voluntarily down their shutters during the bandh period to show solidarity with the other North Eastern States in the fight against the Centre�s move to push the Bill in the ongoing Winter Session of Parliament.
They also appealed to all institutions and establishments to reorganise their schedules for peaceful observance of the bandh.
�The appeal is purely a conscience call to reject the �monstrous bill�. These few hours of sacrifice will go a long way to determine the destiny of our future generations,� the joint release added.
Meanwhile, the Naga Students� Federation has directed its federating units and subordinate bodies to cooperate with those leading the shutdown to ensure that the strike does not affect students.
The federation also expressed its total resentment against the proposed Bill. It assured the public that it would leave no stone unturned to ensure that the Bill does not see the light of day.
The Naga Mothers� Association has also expressed solidarity with the JCPI and the NEFIP and extended its support to the Statewide shutdown against the Bill. The Nagaland Tribes Council, while supporting the stir, appealed to the indigenous people of Nagaland, tribal hohos, civil society organisations, youth and student bodies to stand united against the Bill.
