German student asked to leave India after engaging in anti-CAA protests in Chennai

On Tuesday, a 24-year-old German exchange student claimed that Indian Immigration authorities asked him to leave the country after he took part in the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests in the country. Jakob Lindenthal who had come to India to pursue a master’s degree in physics legally violated the conditions of his student visa due to his “political activities outside the campus”. The German was a part of two rallies in Chennai against the CAA where he held banners and signs which compared the Indian situation after passing of CAA to Nazi Germany.  

Read: IIT Bombay students hold pro-CAA march, condemn politicization of educational institutes

'Wasn't exploiting my student visa'

Lindenthal in the Chennai rally was photographed holding a sign which read, “1933-1945 We have been there” which went viral over social media. When Lindenthal was summoned by the Immigration authorities, he was asked by the authorities to express his dissent and views on the issue. The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019 seeks to grant Indian citizenship to members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities, who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan to India till December 31, 2014, after escaping persecution in the theocratic Muslim states.  

“I think nobody can claim that I was just there to exploit my student visa to go on anti-government demonstrations and harm the country’s integrity or something. But that was how they presented it to me,” said Lindenthal, who spoke to Reuters from New Delhi. 

Read: Tamil Nadu: Security tightened in Chennai as DMK set to hold mega rally against CAA

Complaint Filed Against Sonia, Priyanka, Others For Provocative Speeches Against CAA

Meanwhile, a complaint has been filed against Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and others for delivering provocative speeches against the new Citizenship law. The complaint was filed by advocate Pradeep Gupta in the Chief Judicial Magistrate's (CJM) court in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. The complaint also includes the names of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi and journalist Ravish Kumar. The UP court admitted the complaint and has listed the matter for hearing on January 24. 

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