New Delhi: The Delhi Assembly passed a resolution on Friday against the National Population Register and the National Register of Citizens.
At the one-day special session, which was held to discuss the NPR and the NRC, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal requested the Centre to withdraw them.
“Me, my wife, my entire cabinet don’t have birth certificates to prove citizenship. Will we be sent to detention centres?” Kejriwal asked.
Kejriwal, his wife, parents don’t have birth certificates to prove citizenship
The chief minister challenged Union ministers to show whether they had birth certificates issued by the government.
In the Assembly, Kejriwal asked the MLAs to raise their hands if they had birth certificates, following which only nine legislators in the 70-member House raised their hands.
61 out of 70 members of the House do not have birth certificates
“Sixty-one members of the House do not have birth certificates,” he said. “Will they be sent to detention centres?”
Arvind Kejriwal said if the National Population Register is done, nothing can stop the National Register of Citizens, adding both Hindu and Muslims will be forced into detention centres if they failed to prove their citizenship, as the Delhi Assembly passed a resolution to stop the NPR in the national capital.
Along with Delhi, 11 state Assemblies have said they will not implement the NPR and NRC
Speaking in the Delhi Assembly during a special session, Kejriwal said along with Delhi, 11 state Assemblies have said they will not implement the NPR and NRC. “This is a big message. The Delhi Assembly has passed the resolution, moved by Cabinet Minister Gopal Rai, to not implement the NPR in the national capital,” he said.
Cabinet minister Gopal Rai moved the resolution
Cabinet minister Gopal Rai on Friday moved a resolution in the Delhi Assembly against the NPR and NRC and demanded that the Centre instead focus on the economy and coronavirus outbreak in the country.
Focus on the economy and coronavirus outbreak in the country
Rai moved the resolution during a special session of the Assembly called on Friday.
In his resolution, Rai demanded that if the exercise to build a National Population Register (NPR) is to be carried out, it should be in accordance with the 2010 format.
If the exercise to build a National Population Register (NPR) is to be carried out, it should be in accordance with the 2010 format
“On the basis of the NPR, the National Register of Citizens (NRC) will be done. People are scared of this… I request the Centre that at a time when the Indian economy is down and coronavirus is spreading, it should use its resources on these issues. The Centre should roll back the NRC and the NPR. Even if they wish to go forward, the NPR should be done as per the 2010 format,” Rai said as he moved the resolution.
The Centre should roll back the NRC and the NPR
Rai said if the NPR has to be implemented, it must ensure that all new entries in the NPR are withdrawn.
“The NPR updation should be stalled in Delhi. And if the Centre insists, the process should be carried out in accordance with the 2010 format,” Rai said.
He said there has been an attempt to create an image that it will favour a particular community and will be against another.
“I want to say that the NPR and NRC have nothing to do with any community or religion. It will be imposed on all the people and will affect all. Assam is the best example of it. Out of the 19 lakh people who could not make it to the list, 14 lakh were Hindus. If it is implemented across the country, the Hindus will be most affected.”
If it is implemented across the country, the Hindus will be most affected
Rai said he and his parents also do not have a birth certificate. He said such a fear was not among people even during the British rule. “This is raising questions on every person’s citizenship, this never happened even in the British rule. “
He said that on Thursday Home Minister Amit Shah told Parliament that NPR has no link with NRC so people need not worry.
“Previously, he used to explain the chronology to the people. He has several times told that first the CAA will come and then there will be NRC. However, in the House he said there is no link of NPR with the NRC.”
He said the statement of Shah should have given relief to the people, but it created more conflict in people’s minds.
Slamming the central government and BJP leaders for conflicting statements on the NPR, NRC and CAA, he said there are a lot of questions regarding these things among the people.
After 1955, he said, the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government had amended the citizenship law in 2003.
As per the amendment, it was decided that NPR will be created. The data will be verification and the suspicious data will be categorised as doubtful ‘D’, he said.
The 2003 rule says NPR will be done before the NRC, the Delhi Cabinet Minister added. “Shah is misleading the people.”
He further said it is ironic, that those living abroad do not need any document. “However, those who decided to stay in the country will have to bear the burden. They have to give the proof of their citizenship.”
Rai claimed that Shah also said that the data is being collected so that the schemes can be given in a better way.
“I want to tell Shah that 1.25 crore people in the country have Aadhaar cards. If you want to seriously give them the benefits you don’t need to collect more data. 70 per cent of that 1.25 crore are unemployed. Give them jobs. Then go for more data collection.”
Later, the House took up the resolution for discussion.
During the discussion on the resolution, BJP MLA Vijender Gupta made a remark against the Aam Aadmi Party, which created a ruckus in the House. However, the Speaker expunged his remarks and later asked Gupta to leave the House.