CAB not related to NRC: Amit Shah reasserts pan-India NRC exercise
Union Minister of Home Affairs Amit Shah in the Lok Sabha on Monday said that there is no connection between the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), adding that he will explain the NRC in the same way he had done the CAB in the Parliament. He said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government is committed to implementing the NRC across the country.
"There is no need to connect the Citizenship Amendment Bill with the National Register of Citizens. I will explain it the same way in the Parliament as the CAB. Rest assured, the NRC will be brought in soon," said Amit Shah in the Lok Sabha.
The CAB was passed in the Lok Sabha on Monday midnight with a 311-80 vote share. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has asserted that the Bill will allow refugees from minorities communities like the Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Jain, Christian, and Parsi coming from Pakistan, Bangladesh or Afghanistan to be eligible for Indian citizenship. The move aims at providing protection to minority refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan, relaxing the requirement of stay from 11 to 6 years.
Shah had had several discussions and meetings in the past month with various stakeholders to clear up any confusion about different provisions of the Bill. He had also stated that the Bill will trigger "some protests" as there is "political risk" involved in the decision, but that it will altogether satisfy the large majority of the public.
He also said that "Hindus" are not mentioned in the bill's manifesto, and that the emphasis has been laid on "minorities."
"There is no mention of Hindu in the manifesto of the Bill. The stress has been laid on minorities of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, which includes Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Jains and Parsis," he had said.
BJP leaders have pitched the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the CAB as a package that will root out illegal migrants but will provide citizenship to persecuted communities from the neighbouring countries.
However, some opposition parties, like the TMC, have vehemently opposed the bill, even going on record to claim that the CAB hurts the 'very heart and soul of the idea of India'.
The TMC has been opposed to the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) from its inception, with West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee even claiming that the CAB and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) were "two sides of the same coin" and the party's stance to oppose it till the end.
The Opposition alleges that the bill targets Muslims and is at odds with the secular principles enshrined in the Constitution as it excludes a community.
(Inputs from DNAIndia.com)
