Patna: The Congress is riding high on the popularity of student leader Kanhaiya Kumar who is leading the anti-CAA protest in Bihar which started from Champaran on January 30. Party secretary Shakil Khan, who is also a former JNU Student Union President, is also with Kanhaiya Kumar in this movement which will end up with a massive rally in Gandhi Maidan here on February 27.
Speaking to IANS, Shakeel Khan termed Kanhaiya Kumar the “roohe-rawan (soul)” of this movement, which is drawing huge crowds across the state.
“All the opposition leaders, including leaders from the RJD, and the RLSP have been invited for the grand rally and we will pressurise the government to pass an anti-CAA resolution as the Assembly is in session,” Shakil Khan, who is also an MLA, said.
He also stressed that “this movement is for a cause and there is no politics into it”.
The rally on February 27 could see presence of all the leaders who have been at the front of anti-CAA movement, as Mahatma Gandhi’s great-grandson Tushar Gandhi, Jignesh Mevani, Sadaf Jafar, and current JNUSU President Aishe Ghosh have been invited.
The Congress is trying to build pressure on the government to withdraw the controversial law.
Khan, asked why he is with Kanhaiya Kumar, said: “The Congress working committee has passed a resolution on this issue… the party’s stand is very clear and our leader Rahul Gandhi has addressed several (anti-CAA) public meeting. We also sat on protest at Rajghat.”
The Congress eyes an opportunity to activate all the opposition leaders and assemble them on one platform to take on the government on the CAA, the NPR and the NRC, said a leader.
Kanhaiya Kumar is drawing huge crowds in his protest, despite a number of attacks on him. “Every district has a coordination committee to work on and in each district, all the local MLAS and office bearers are invited to participate in the public rally to be addressed by Kanhaiya Kumar,” Shakil Khan said.
