The Home Minister Shah said had India not been divided into religious lines in 1947, there was no need for the Citizenship Amendment Bill
New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party-led government has issued a whip and has asked all MPs of the Rajya Sabha to remain present in the Upper House on December 10 and December 11. The controversial Citizenship Amendment Bill which was passed in the Lok Sabha during midnight hour, after a heated debate that stretched for hours, now awaits its passage in the Rajya Sabha of the Parliament.
The Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) was passed in the Lok Sabha after a heated debate which extended for seven hours. Among a total of 391 members present in the Lower House, 311 voted in favor of the Bill while 80 voted against it.
On Wednesday the Bill is likely to be move in the Rajya Sabha, to cross its final hurdle before becoming a law to provide Indian nationality to Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Parsis, Jains and Buddhists facing mistreatment in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.
Amit Shah also said the Modi government will definitely implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC) across the country and when it will be done, not a single illegal immigrant will remain in India.
He said there is a difference between illegal immigrants and those who have come after facing religious persecution in the three neighboring countries.
The Home Minister Shah said had India not been divided into religious lines in 1947, there was no need for the Citizenship Amendment Bill.
“Muslim population in India has increased from 9.8 percent in 1951 to 14.8 percent in 2011 while the Hindu population has declined from 84 percent in 1951 to 79 percent in 2011.
“On the other hand, the minority population in Pakistan has decreased from 23 percent in 1947 to 3.7 percent in 2011. Similarly, the minority population in Bangladesh has decreased from 22 percent in 1947 to 7 percent in 2011,” Shah said, India does not discriminate against anyone on the basis of religion.
The Home Minister Amit Shah said the Citizenship Amendment Bill will give relief and constitutional respect to those who have been living a painful life after facing Mistreatment in neighboring countries.
Shah dismissed the suggestions that the CAB is violating Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality for everyone, as it aims to give citizenship to mistreated people only.
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