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CAB unconstitutional, divisive: Opposition

New Delhi: Calling the Citizenship Amendment Bill "unconstitutional", "divisive" and an assault on the democratic and secular fabric of the nation, the Opposition in Rajya Sabha attacked the government on Wednesday.

The Upper House witnessed strong opposition to the Citizenship (Amendment ), 2019 from the Congress, Shiv Sena, NCP, DMK, BSP, RJD, JDS, AAP, MDMK, TRS, IUML and SDP during the six-hour-long debate on the controversial legislation.

Trinamool Congress MP Derek O'Brien delivered an impassioned speech on the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill on Wednesday, warning the Rajya Sabha the country was "moving from a democracy to a dictatorship".

Derek termed the Bill as unconstitutional, and warned of people's movement against the Bill. He also said it would be challenged in the Supreme Court. He said the present Bill has been drawn from "Nazi Coffee Book" and is part of BJP's "agenda".

Launching a scathing attack on the government, Leader of Opposition in the House Ghulam Nabi Azad demanded to know why the entire North East including Assam, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Nagaland was burning at the moment if people were happy about the proposed legislation.

Congress veteran P Chidambaram termed the Bill a slap on the face of Parliament and said the government is "ramming" through with it in order to advance its Hindutva agenda.

Kapil Sibal accused the government of giving a legal colour to the "two-nation theory" and urged it not to convert "Indian republic into a Jurassic republic where there are two dinosaurs".

The Shiv Sena, which voted in favour of the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in Lok Sabha, opposed it in Rajya Sabha, saying the draft law should have been debated on the basis of "humanity not religion".

The Sena does not need to prove how "staunch Hindu" and "patriotic" the party is, Sanjay Raut said while participating in the debate. The Sena member also attacked some MPs who said on Tuesday that those opposing the Bill were "traitors" and "speaking the language of Pakistan".

SP MP Javed Ali Khan said through the proposed legislation, the BJP was fulfilling the dream of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan.

Vaiko (MDMK) said the Bill was an assault on equality, secularism and democracy.

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