By Pervez Bari
Bhopal: The Social Democratic Party of India, (SDPI), has rejected Citizenship Amendment Bill 2016 in all its entirety and takes it as highly communal and against the spirit of Constitution of India diluting cultural heritage of Assam. It is also a share violation of Assam Accord 1985 which was agstakeholdersall stake holders.
Lambasting heavily on central government SDPI National president M K Faizy has said that this bill has send shock waves and widespread anger among all the parties in Assam and adjoining north eastern states. Only because such a legislation is against the popular will and mandate of the people of the region. He rejected Union Home Minister Raj Nath Singh’s statement at the floor of the House that the Bill is not specific to the North Eastern region the ut applicable to whole of India.
Faizy reminded the Home Minister that after the partition major migration has been reported in North Eastern states mainly from Bangladesh due to political instability while from Afghanistan and Pakistan such migration are abysmal. He said before placing this Bill in the House, Central government had brought a gazette notification before Assam Legislative Assembly elections 2016 clearly keeping an eye on Hindu Bengali speaking voters. That time too it was opposed by all including Bengali Hindu. The Bill provides citizenships to persecuted minorities belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist and Christian communities from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh while ignoring Muslim persecuted minorities from Myanmar and Sri Lanka.
SDPI raises a question as to on what basis, criteria or principles Govt. has excluded the citizen ship to the immediate Neighbour Muslim minority in Myanmar who were declared most persecuted minority of the world by UN. This is enough proof of the Govt’s biased and communal approach to the North Eastern turmoil. He said Assam accord 1985 is the only solution to resolve long pending migrants issue in Assam and North Eastern states and any attempt to change the cultural, religious and linguistic demography of the area may endanger the integrity and security of the whole nation.
Faizy elaborated further that large scale violent protests and political development followed by this Bill are clear indicator that the government is adding fuel to the fire through its short sighted, communal and fascist attitude. He questioned as to why the government is passing Bills that require extensive debate at the fag end of its tenure? The aim appears to capture a vote bank without pondering over the after effects on other Indian citizens. The Bill appears to be only another form of selective immigrant appeasement.
Faizy also lamented that three prominent individuals of Assam have been booked for sedition at a time when the state is witnessing series of protests against the Bill. He said while most of JPC members have opposed the Bill in its finding and recommended the deletion of religious criteria from the Bill. The government’s insistence on passing the Bill as it is show its high handedness and dictatorial attitude which is against the spirit of democracy.
SDPI president Faizy demands immediate scrapping of the Bill and demand to wait till the NRC is completed. Furthermore he demanded constitution of various tribunals to ascertain the citizenship of the people as per guidelines prescribed by Assam Accord 1985.