BJP not on back foot in NE over citizenship bill: Deb

Brushing aside claims that the BJP is on the back foot in the Northeast due to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Deb said on Wednesday that organisations devoid of any support base are labelling Northeast as a troubled region.

"These organisations who don't have any support base are trying to label the Northeast as a troubled region for vested interests. Their claims that the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill has put the BJP on the back foot are utterly baseless," said Deb. He was in West Bengal for a BJP rally.

He also said that if the BJP was under pressure because of the bill in the Northeast, then it would not have been successful in the autonomous council elections in Assam.

He made it clear that the bill will be implemented in Tripura. "Tripura is part of India and the federal structure. The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill is applicable to all the states," said Deb.

The chief minister also said that not only will the BJP win more than 300 seats in the upcoming elections, but it will also win at least 20 out of the 25 Lok Sabha seats in the Northeastern states.

However, he avoided a direct reply regarding the objection of BJP allies in the Northeast against the bill. "Every party goes by its own policy," he said.