RSS lauds Citizenship Bill passage, calls it 'courageous step'

Nagpur: RSS general secretary Bhaiyyaji Joshi on Thursday congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in Parliament and described it as a "courageous step".

Talking to reporters here, Joshi said all should rise above their political compulsions and welcome the bill.

He said the stand of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has always been that a Hindu who comes to India because of persecution in another country cannot be termed as an intruder, but a refugee.

The bill, which seeks to provide Indian citizenship to non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, was passed by the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. The Lok Sabha passed it on Monday.

Joshi dubbed it as a "courageous step" and thanked the BJP-led central government, the prime minister and the Home minister for taking the initiative.

"When the country was partitioned, there was a demand for division on religious grounds. However, India did not have any such idea of forming a 'religious country'. But, the country was partitioned over this issue and the leaders then had accepted it," he said.

If partition had not taken place on religious grounds, then many incidents thereafter would not have happened, the RSS general secretary said.

"Subsequently,Pakistan and Bangladesh declared themselves as Islamic states and there were doubts then about what place the minorities residing there will get...because as per the agreement, it was said that the minorities will not face any injustice," said Joshi.

Unfortunately, this did not happen and the Hindus residing there in large numbers "became target of persecution", he said. Looking at the census conducted from time-to-time, the number ofHindus residing in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh came down drastically, he said.

"The question arises where these people went, and it comes to fore that many of them came to India," he said.