The members of Congress alleged that the administration had neglected to announce the guidelines for more than four years and had not adhered to any deadline.
New Delhi: Congress National Secretary Jairam Ramesh questioned the timing of the Citizenship Amendment Act’s implementation and claimed that it was done in order to divide voters in West Bengal and Assam ahead of the general elections. He stated that the government introduced this rule after four years and three months. The bill was approved in December 2019, and it should have taken three to six months to draft the bill. It took the Modi government nine requests for extensions from the Supreme Court and four years and three months to announce the guidelines.
Allegations Of Polarisation
“These are purely polarizing efforts aimed at influencing the elections in Assam and Bengal. Why didn’t they present it in 2020 if they were acting honestly? It is being brought up today, one month before the elections. This is headline management .This is the societal polarization plan,” Jairam said.
He further stated that the administration had neglected to announce the guidelines for more than four years and had not adhered to any deadlines.
“According to our Prime Minister Modi, nothing in our government is delayed, and his government operates on a deadline. Why did it take more than four years, then?” he added.
Divisive Politics Of BJP
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that the motive behind the late release of the notifications of the Citizenship Amendment Act is “BJP’s desperate attempt at divisive politics,” which is right before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Amit Shah’s Clarifications Against Misconceptions
Union Home Minister Amit Shah declared unequivocally in February that the purpose of the CAA was to grant citizenship, not to revoke anyone’s already obtained the citizenship.
Minorities in our nation are being incited, particularly the Muslim minority. Since the Act makes no mention of citizenship, CAA cannot take away someone’s citizenship. Shah has stated, “The purpose of the CAA is to grant citizenship to refugees who were subjected to persecution in Bangladesh and Pakistan.
What Is Citizenship Amendment Act?
The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which was proposed by the Narendra Modi government, aims to grant Indian citizenship to non-Muslim migrants who have been persecuted and who came to India before December 31, 2014, including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians.
A web gateway has been made available for the submission of citizenship applications, which must be made entirely online.
Citizenship Act 1955
The Citizenship Act of 1955 has allowed more than thirty district magistrates and home secretaries in nine states to grant Indian citizenship to Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, Christians, and immigrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan during the last two years.
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs’ annual report for 2021–22, 1,414 members of non-Muslim minority communities who were born in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan between April 1, 2021, and December 31, 2021 received Indian citizenship by virtue of registration or naturalization under the Citizenship Act, 1955.
(With inputs from ANI)
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