This archive report was first published on 11 January 2020.
January 11, 2020, marked another day of widespread protests in India, with thousands of demonstrators in Kolkata taking to the streets to express their discontent with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit.
The protests, which have been ongoing since the citizenship law was approved by parliament last month, have resulted in occasional deadly clashes and have gripped the Hindu-majority nation.
According to police, nearly 30,000 protesters participated in the rally, with many forming human chains that spanned miles through the streets of the eastern megacity.
"What we are fighting for is the future of India," said Surita Roy, a woman who joined the rally, in an interview with AFP.
As Modi's plane touched down at the city's airport, a crowd mobbed the area, chanting "We are against fascism." The Indian leader then transferred to a military helicopter that carried him to the house of West Bengal state leader Mamata Banerjee, a vocal critic of Modi's ruling Hindu nationalist government.
Despite police efforts to stop protesters from following Modi to the chief minister's house, Banerjee joined the street protests herself after meeting with the Prime Minister, stating that she had asked him to repeal the law "for the larger interests of the country".
The citizenship law has been met with criticism from many, who claim it is a precursor to a national register of citizens that could leave India's 200 million Muslims, approximately 15% of the country's population, stateless.
Many poor Indians lack the necessary documents to prove their nationality, exacerbating concerns over the law's potential impact.
Modi has accused his political opponents of "misleading" and "inciting" people against his Hindu nationalist government, while his party has launched a door-to-door campaign to dispel "misinformation" about the law, which they insist is not discriminatory.
At least 27 people, mostly Muslims, have been killed during clashes with police after defying restrictions on demonstrations in several states of the country.
