Bengaluru: A 19-yr-old Journalism student Amulya Leona shouting slogans in praise of Pakistan at an anti-CAA rally in Bengaluru, is only the latest episode of how such protests are anything else except a sincere lodging of disgruntlement against anything that they deem unconstitutional. 

Truth be told, these anti-CAA protests have only been a sustained effort to propagate hate against personalities, religions and ultimately, the country. 

No. We are certainly not exaggerating this malaise. Just a day before Amulya shouted slogans in favour of Pakistan, another anti-CAA advocate and a member of AIMIM Wari Pathan openly issued a threat saying 15 cr Muslims would be too much for 100 cr Hindus. This statement came at a rally in Gulbarga. And this was also a grim reminder of Akbaruddin Owaisi’s statement in 2012 saying if the police force is withdrawn for 15 minutes, Hindus in India would be killed. 

Interestingly, in both the cases, AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi was sharing the stage and he minced no words in condemning the latter, but not Waris Pathan. 

Then, we ought to talk about what transpired at Shaheen Bagh. 

As we all know, the protests at this venue have been going on for an inordinately long time. Roads have been blocked, traffic has come to a standstill and people are forced to take detours to reach their destinations. 

But more shocking than these obstructions are the slogans shouted at the venue. 

For example: Sharjeel Imam, a former JNU student shouted slogans in support of severing Assam from the rest of India. 

At the same spot, there were other shockers as well! Young children were calling for the killings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah. 

And as if that wasn’t enough, there were slogans seeking freedom on the lines of “Jinnah-Wali”. 

In some places, there were placards being displayed seeking freedom for Kashmir! 

One only wonders as to how these protests have been hijacked for various reasons, other than the intended aim. 

So does everything have to boil down to Hinduism, Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and ultimately, as we shudder to think, India itself?