Kolkata, Jan 20 (IANS): Students and alumni of Presidency University staged a demonstration on the campus against the new citizenship law during the founder's day programme here on Monday.

The protesters collected signatures in support of their movement "We won't show papers". Thespian Bivas Chakraborty and former West Bengal Home Secretary Prasad Ranjan Roy were among the signatories.

Alleging that the entire issue of National Register of Citizens (NRC) and Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has been 'thrust' on the people at astonishing speed, Roy said: "People of our generation don't have birth certificates. We have school certificate and degree, on the strength of which we joined government service. If now somebody asks me to show records of my ancestor's land holdings, I have to say we never had such documents.

"What all is happening is unacceptable. What saddens me more is the failure of political parties to join forces in resisting it," said Roy.

Chakraborty said a referendum or a plebiscite should be held to decide whether the law has acceptability.

"This law should have been enacted after taking the public into confidence. They (BJP) are shouting that they have got 38 per cent votes (in the Lok Sabha polls). This is not done, this isn't democracy. You can't decide our future just because you have got the support of 38 per cent of the electors.

"Let there be a referendum, plebiscite to determine whether this law is acceptable," he said.