CAA back in focus, citizenship to migrants from Bangladesh,Pak,Afghan likely from January 2021

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Dec 10, 2020:    Even as first anniversary of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act draws near, the legislation remains ineffective as rules are yet to be notified by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). While Covid-19 pandemic and consequent lockdown delayed implementation of the CAA, the controversial law is back in focus.

 

The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on December 9, 2019 and by the Rajya Sabha on December 11, 2019. After the President of India on December 12 last year gave his assent to the law, there has hardly been any word on it from the home ministry.

Senior BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya last week unexpectedly announced in West Bengal that the granting of the citizenship to the non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan under the CAA will begin, most likely from January, 2021.

Speaking to a passel of reporters, the Vijayvargiya said, “The BJP does what it says. We said we will implement the CAA after the PM and HM stated this in Parliament. After hearing in Supreme Court, where several leaders including Mamata Banerjee had gone against it, the migrants from minorities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh (Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Christian and Parsi) will get the citizenship. We will give them citizenship. We will do as we say.”

He said the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is likely to be implemented from January next year as the Centre and the BJP are keen to grant citizenship to the large refugee population in West Bengal.

However, the rules have not yet been notified. And, without rules being notified, the CAA cannot be implemented or come into force.

But the statement is not totally off the mark. Sources said that the BJP is keen to have the focus back on the CAA with the prime minister and Union home minister calling it as one of the achievements of the central government to mark one year of the Modi-2.0 in May this year.

It is also learnt that BJP president JP Nadda in a meeting with party leaders where Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal were present in Delhi a fortnight ago, the CAA was discussed. While the key focus was on Assam Assembly election, the CAA issue figured in that meeting. It is learnt that the rules are expected to be notified soon.

The CAA provides citizenship to six undocumented non-Muslim communities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who entered India on or before December 31, 2014.

The much-delayed notification of rules may lead to a new round of protests but is also likely to impact elections to be held in various states in 2021, mainly West Bengal and Assam. Both states share long border with Bangladesh.

The fiery Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee has already declared that her government will not allow implementation of National Register of Citizens (NRC) or National Population Register (NPR) in the state. The NRC is being presented as the next step after the implementation of the CAA. The NPR is likely to follow afterwards.

Meanwhile, several organisations including North Eastern Student’s Organisation (NESO) which includes eight student unions from seven north-eastern states have called for observing December 11 as a black day.

Courtesy:India Today