Reacting to the developments in Afghanistan and the ongoing repatriation efforts, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said that the Afghanistan crisis is "precisely why" the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act was necessary.
India is carrying out evacuations from the chaotic Kabul airport, with emphasis on Hindu and Sikh minorities.
"Recent developments in our volatile neighbourhood and the way Sikhs and Hindus are going through a harrowing time are precisely why it was necessary to enact the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)," Puri tweeted.
The CAA prompted weeks-long protests in the national capital when it was passed in 2019, in which nearly 100 died. The law provides citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim minorities from neighbouring Muslim majority countries who came to India before 2015. It was passed in 2019 and came into force in January 10, 2020.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had directed officials while reviewing the Afghanistan crisis to extend all possible help to “Afghan brothers and sisters” looking forward to assistance from India, particularly the Sikh and Hindu minorities who are seeking refuge.
India on Sunday brought back nearly 400 people, including 329 of its nationals and two Afghan lawmakers, in three different flights as part of its efforts to evacuate its citizens from Kabul in the backdrop of the deteriorating situation in the city after its takeover by the Taliban.
(With inputs from agencies)
(Published 23 August 2021, 04:01 IST)
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