Lok Sabha passes controversial CAB after fiery debate

The Lok Sabha on Monday passed the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill with Home Minister Amit Shah rejecting the Opposition’s criticism that the proposed legislation discriminated against the minorities of the country.

The Bill was passed after a seven-hour marathon debate which saw the Opposition members target the Modi government, accusing it of pursuing discriminatory policies, particularly against Muslims.

The Bill was passed with 311 members voting in its favour and 80 against it.

Shah said the Bill seeks to grant citizenship to those minorities — Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis, Buddhists, Jains and Christians from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh — who sought refuge in India after escaping persecution in those countries.

The minister said the minority population declined in the three countries considerably between 1951 and 2011. They comprised 23% of Pakistan’s population in 1951, which was reduced to 3.7% in 2011. In Bangladesh, minorities formed 7.8% of the population in 2011 as against 22% in 1947. On the contrary, minorities did not face any discrimination in India and their population increased from 9.8% in 1951 to 14.23% in 2011, Shah said.

He asserted that so long as Modi remained the prime minister, the Constitution of India will be the government’s only religious book. “No person of any religion needs to fear.”

Shah rejected suggestions that the CAB was a trap to implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC) across the country.

“We will implement the NRC across the country... when we will bring it, not a single illegal immigrant will be left in the country,” he asserted.

The minister also called for an end to protests in the northeastern states of the country, saying appropriate exceptions had been made to ensure protection of the identity of the region.

Shah said Nagaland and Mizoram remain protected by the Inner Line Permit policy and Manipur, too, has been added to it keeping in view the sentiments of the citizens of the state.

“Meghalaya is protected by the Sixth Schedule, which has been kept out of the ambit of the Bill,” Shah said. Most political parties from the Northeast expressed satisfaction over the government addressing their concerns and supported the Bill.

Earlier, opposing the Bill, Congress member Manish Tewari termed it a “monumental blunder” and contended that it was against the Constitution as it discriminated among refugees on the basis of religion.

The House witnessed some dramatic moments as AIMIM member Asaduddin Owaisi tore a copy of the Bill after an impassioned speech, wondering why the BJP was opposed to Muslims.

“I am not sad that Muslims from Pakistan, Afghanistan are not included in this Bill. But why hate Muslims so much... we rejected Jinnah and believed in Maulana Azad. Muslims have more than thousand years’ association with India,” Owaisi said.