Can't ignore states, anti-CAA resolutions: Yashwant Sinha

Lucknow: Former Union minister Yashwant Sinha here on Monday termed the passing of anti-CAA resolutions by non-BJP states a constitutional crisis, saying this can't be ignored. He stressed that there was no need to bring the legislation as it was "anti-democratic" and "divided people on the basis of religion".

"There is a constitutional crisis. You cannot ignore state governments. You have to take them into confidence," Sinha said when asked about resolutions passed by states against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

He expressed apprehensions that the Centre "might impose the president's rule" if the legislation was not implemented.

"They can do it. They are mad people," Sinha said while interacting with mediapersons in the presence of Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha.

The former BJP leader was here as his march from Mumbai to Delhi's Rajghat for the propagation of the ideology of Mahatma Gandhi reached the city. Further commenting on the legislation, Sinha said, "It is anti-democratic and against the basic structure of the Constitution. This type of amendment in the citizenship law was not needed."

He said an atmosphere of "ashanti, kolahal aur dar" (unrest, uproar and fear) has surfaced in the country due to government initiatives.

"Due to the CAA and the announcement of the NRC, people are afraid and agitating. It's the responsibility of the government to reach out to those who are in fear and agitating to ally their apprehensions and establish peace but it is not doing any such thing," he said.

"They are dividing people on the basis of religion. We we are going back to the pre-1947 era when some others used to do it," he added.

Sinha also accused the BJP of indulging in the vote-bank politics by "breaking social fabric" of the country and asked where was the spirit of "Team India" preached by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014.