GOVT notifies Parliament to introduce CAB as INC led opposition gearing up for showdown against the bill

Government proposes to get okayed the controversial Citizenship Amendment Bill in the ongoing Winter Session of Parliament seeking to grant Indian citizenship to five minority communities compelled to leave their ancestral homes in Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan and arrived in India till December 31, 2014.The Hindu, Christians, Buddhists, Sikh and Parsis will benefit under the provisions of the proposed legislation which is part of the BJP’s 2019 Lok Sabha commitments to the people.

The bill to be piloted by Home Minister Amit Shah in Parliament is dubbed by the INC, Trinamool Congress, AIMIM and some other opposition parties as divisive since the Muslim community has been left out of the provisions of the legislation. The bill proposes to amend the Third Schedule to make applicants belonging to the communities from these countries eligible for citizenship by naturalisation, if they can establish their residency in India for five years instead of existing 11 years. The Bill further seeks to protect the constitutional guarantee of the North Eastern States covered under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution and statutory protection given to areas under the Inner Line System. The Bill is scheduled to be tabled in Lok Sabha on December 9 and taken up for passage on December 10.  The Bill will be taken up in the Rajya Sabha for discussion and passage. Despite lacking majority in the 250-Member Upper House, the government is confident of securing support from some parties for its smooth passage. The Congress led Opposition parties are likely to press for referring the CAB to Parliamentary Select Committee or further scrutiny of the bill cleared by the Union Cabinet  chaired by  Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has gone public reiterating that the ruling Trinamool Congress remains staunchly opposed to CAB and NRC across the nation.TMC parliamentary Party’s leader   Derek O’Brien told The  Assam Tribune  “We will fight for the heart and soul of this country.” Rajya Sabha MP and Assam Congress president Ripun Bora on Friday sat on a silent dharna in front of the Mahatma Gandhi’s statue in the Parliament House premises against the Bill.“ The North East Students’ Organisation (NESO) has called for an 11-hour shutdown in the region on December 10 against the tabling of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in the Parliament.However, Nagaland has been kept out of the shutdown call, due to the ongoing Hornbill Festival although the Nagaland Students’ Federation will stage a demonstration in front of the Raj Bhawan on December 10.

The shutdown has been called from 5 am to 4 pm on December 10.Addressing media-persons here this evening, NESO chairman Samuel Jyrwa said that the Northeast stands united against the Centre’s decision to impose CAB, which will eventually reduce the indigenous people to minority. “The Government of India has been trying to look at the problems State-wise but the problem of the NE region cannot be addressed that way because if one part of the NE is affected by CAB, sooner or later, the other parts would also be affected. The NE region has to be looked as one entity,” Samuel asserted after all the constituent student bodies of the NESO sat for a meeting to chalk out its future course of action.