THE CONTENTIOUS CITIZENSHIP (AMENDMENT) BILL AND THE CONTROVERSIES AROUND IT

Both houses of Parliament last week passed the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill according to which members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities, who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, till December 31, 2014, facing religious persecution there, will not be treated as illegal immigrants but given Indian citizenship.

The Bill will amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 that requires applicants to have resided in India for 11 of the previous 14 years. The amendment seeks to relax this requirement from 11 years to 6 years.

The Bill has become law with President Ram Nath Kovind formally giving his assent to it Thursday.

As expected, the Bill will face legal challenges and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) is the first body to move the Supreme Court alleging that it violates the fundamental Right to Equality of the Constitution.

BACKLASH IN THE NORTHEAST

The Bill will impact on the northeast region the most. Violent protests have erupted there, especially in Assam and Tripura, as the indigenous people are worried that the entry of these people will endanger their identity and livelihood. Even as the Indian Army was deployed in Assam and Tripura Thursday, internet services have been suspended in both the states.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday sought to assure the people, particularly of Assam, saying that they have nothing to worry about the CAB. He said no one can take away their rights, identity and culture. Modi further said Government is “totally committed to constitutionally safeguard the political, linguistic, cultural and land rights of the Assamese people in accordance with Clause 6” of the Assam Accord.

Leaders in Assam, however, believe that it will nullify the 1985 Assam Accord, which set March 24, 1971, as the cut-offdate for identification and deportation of illegal immigrants irrespective of religion. The CAB now seeks to give citizenship to all non-Muslim ‘foreigners’. The regional leaders, particularly in Assam, resent this. They want even Hindus who have come from Bangladesh, to be declared ‘foreigners’ and ousted from the state. The BJP on the other hand, it is alleged, wishes to protect its Hindu vote base.