MUMBAI, 27 DECEMBER, 2019 (GPN):  There were two protests in Mumbai on Friday 27 December, one was at Azad Maidan which was anti-Citizenship Amendment Act while other one was at August Kranti Maidan which was in support of CAA. After reaching the venue where demonstration took place in support of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), Fadnavis shared pictures on Twitter of the demonstration featuring a large number of people with banners and the National Flag. He Tweeted, “Reached Azad Maidan in Mumbai and joined the massive gathering of citizens to support the #CitizenshipAmendmentAct !”  But after realising that he erroneously goofed up, Fadnavis deleted the tweet. Though people retweeted it and the error got viral on social media.

Devendra Fadnavis said on Friday that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act does not take away the citizenship of any Indian, and took a swipe at former ally Shiv Sena for its `silence’ on the issue. Addressing a rally organized by `Sanvidan Sanman Manch’ at the historic August Kranti Maidan here in support of the CAA, he said it is not a “law”, but a process for giving citizenship to those who were displaced from the neighbouring countries.

“The Congress and communists are spreading misinformation about CAA and NRC (National Register of Citizens),” the former Maharashtra chief minister said. “I am surprised that our old friends are quiet. They used to say once that illegal Bangladeshis should be thrown out, but now they are quiet,” he said, in a dig at the Shiv Sena which now heads the ruling coalition which includes the Congress and the NCP.

The Leader of Opposition in the Assembly also slammed the state government for denying permission for a march from August Kranti Maidan to Lokmanya Tilak’s statue at Girgaon beach. “Has this government lost its head?” he asked, invoking the heading of a famous editorial penned by the nationalist leader during British rule.

“Nobody can stop us from supporting the Act until the protest against it stops,” he said. The Central government recently decided to give citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Parsi, Buddhist, and Christian refugees, who faced religious persecution in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh and came to India on or before December 31, 2014. ENDS