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You Might Lose Everything: Mamata on CAA

Mamata Banerjee claimed that the CAA was a ploy to divide Bengal and ultimately drive away Bengalis from India…reports Asian Lite News

West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee, on Tuesday issued a note of caution against enrolling on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) portal, saying applicants might ultimately lose everything.

“Some of you might be happy over the CAA notification. If you are happy, then I am also happy. But when you are sad, I am also sad. I am telling those who will be enrolling at the CAA portal, try to understand something. How can one be granted fresh citizenship when one is already a citizen? Without citizenship how could one cast votes for such a long time?” the Chief Minister questioned, while addressing a public meeting at Habra in North 24 Parganas District on Tuesday afternoon.

“Once you apply at the portal, you will become an illegal immigrant from a genuine citizen. Once you become an illegal immigrant what will happen to your property or profession? You will be sent to detention camps. Those will also become illegal. So think again and again before you apply,” the Chief Minister warned.

She also claimed that the CAA was a ploy to divide Bengal and ultimately drive away Bengalis from India.

“In Delhi a number of Bengali-speaking people have been harassed after they were branded as Bangladeshis,” the Chief Minister said.

According to her, the CAA notification is yet another ploy of the BJP to create division among people. “That is why besides Bangladesh and Pakistan, it has also included Afghanistan, though it does not have any international border. Why weren’t Sri Lanka and Myanmar, who have borders with India, included? This is just a ploy to polarise some religions against one particular religion,” she said.

From the dais she also raised a war cry that she would not allow introduction of CAA or NRC in West Bengal.

“I will oppose that, even if I have to sacrifice my life for it,” the Chief Minister said.

As the Chief Minister was speaking at Habra, celebrations over the CAA notification were going on just 15 kms away at Thakurnagar, which is considered to be the hub of Matuas, a Backward Class refugee community from neighbouring Bangladesh.

Reacting to her comments, the Leader of Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari said CM Mamata Banerjee was making a futile attempt to instigate the people from the Muslim community on the CAA issue.

“But she will not be successful since the Muslim brothers have realised that CAA is meant for granting citizenship and not taking it away,” he said.

Study before commenting: Guv

 West Bengal Governor C.V. Ananda Bose on Tuesday advised CM Banerjee to first study and understand the details of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) before passing any comment on it.

CM Banerjee had termed the Centre’s move as a ‘political gimmick’ ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Reacting to the Chief Minister questioning the legal sanctity of the CAA, the Governor said the Act has an important legal aspect, which is meant to “unite India” rather than to “divide the country”.

“I would request my Constitutional colleague, the Chief Minister, to first study and understand the details of the Act and only then make comments on it,” the Governor said.

He said the CAA was passed on the floor of the Parliament in December 2019, and on Monday, a notification was issued to implement it as per the legal provisions.

“This reflects the legal realities as well as good governance,” the Governor said.

ALSO READ: Hindu Groups Worldwide Praise India’s Citizenship Amendment Act

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Hindu Groups Worldwide Praise India’s Citizenship Amendment Act

The groups hoped that “Pakistan and Bangladesh will consider implementing a similar Citizenship Amendment Act to foster brotherhood among Indian nationals”….reports Asian Lite News

Calling the government’s decision to offer Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities a “big win for human rights”, Hindu organisations across the US, the UK, and Canada on Tuesday hailed the announcement of the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

The CAA — an integral part of the BJP’s 2019 Lok Sabha polls manifesto — will enable the granting of citizenship to people from Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist and Parsi communities, who had migrated to India before December 31, 2014, from neighbouring countries because of religious persecution.

“The government’s decision to offer Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan is a commendable move… India, as a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and various other international conventions, has an obligation to provide asylum to persecuted individuals regardless of their religion,” the Hindu Forum Canada said in a statement.

The group hoped that “Pakistan and Bangladesh will consider implementing a similar Citizenship Amendment Act to foster brotherhood among Indian nationals”.

US-based advocacy group, Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA), called the move “a big win for Human Rights for the persecuted religious minorities of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

It further said that CAA has no impact on existing Indian citizens of any faith and that it simply fast-tracks the Indian citizenship process for nearly 31,000 religious minorities who fled to neighbouring nations “in the face of extreme and systemic persecution”.

CoHNA pointed out that each year in Pakistan, thousands of minor girls from minority communities are kidnapped, forcibly converted and “married” to their abductors, with support from police and judicial authorities.

“As a result, petrified families with young kids have been fleeing to India for basic safety,” the group, which had run an education and advocacy campaign on CAA in 2020 to counter false narrative on the topic, said.

Hindu American Foundation (HAF) Executive Director Suhag Shukla said that CAA was “long overdue and necessary”, as it protects some of the most vulnerable refugees in India, granting them the human rights they were denied in their home country.

Shukla said that CAA mirrors the long-established Lautenberg Amendment in the US, in place since 1990, which has provided a clear immigration path for persons fleeing a select group of nations where religious persecution is rampant.

“I’m proud to see both the oldest and largest secular democracies in the world — the US and India — be a beacon of hope by extending a pathway to freedom and a new life to those who have suffered gross human rights violations simply because of their religion,” she added.

London-based Hindu advocacy group said: “This is a reflection of India’s commitment to religious freedom and equality, integral to its secular fabric.”

The CAA was enacted by the Parliament in December 2019 amid large-scale demonstrations from the Muslim community, backed by Opposition parties, demanding a rollback of the law calling it discriminatory.

They claimed that the Muslim community had been excluded from the CAA.

“The CAA does not alter the rights of any Indian citizen nor does it establish any religious test for general immigration or exclude Muslims from immigrating to India, as is sometimes wrongly said and reported,” HAF said in a statement.

“Muslims often have more rights in Islamic countries such as Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, where there are constitutional discriminations against non-Muslims,” the Hindu Forum Canada said.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah had reiterated in Parliament that Indian citizens of the Muslim community do not need to fear anything, as this Bill would not affect their citizenship in any way.

Requesting the Opposition not to do politics on this issue and divide people on communal lines, Shah said that “this Bill aims at granting rather than taking away someone’s citizenship”.

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CAA Notification Bristles Oppn

All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) activists protest after the government officially notified the rules for the implementation of CAA, in Guwahati on Monday. (ANI Photo)

Opposition alleges that the BJP is trying to divide society and polarise the atmosphere ahead of general elections, even as the ruling party hailed it as a “historic” decision…reports Asian Lite News

Opposition parties on Monday slammed the Centre for notifying the rules for the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, alleging the BJP was trying to divide society and polarise the atmosphere ahead of general elections, even as the ruling party hailed it as a “historic” decision that fulfils the promise made by the makers of the Constitution.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh alleged that the announcement is yet another attempt to “manage the headlines” after the Supreme Court’s strictures on the electoral bonds issue. He said it has taken four years and three months for the Narendra Modi government to notify the rules for the law cleared by Parliament in December 2019.

“After seeking nine extensions for the notification of the rules, the timing right before the elections is evidently designed to polarise the elections, especially in West Bengal and Assam,” the Congress leader alleged. Hitting out at the BJP, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan described the CAA as a law that creates division along communal lines and said that it will not be implemented in the southern state.

“All of Kerala will stand united in opposing this communally divisive law,” Vijayan said in a statement here. It is a flagrant violation of the Constitution to grant citizenship to non-Muslims who immigrated to India, the CPI(M) leader said, adding, “Defining Indian citizenship based on religion is unacceptable. It poses an open challenge to humanity, the nation’s traditions, and its people.”

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee vowed to fiercely oppose the CAA if she found it to be discriminatory against groups of people living in India and if it curtailed their existing citizenship rights in any manner. At a hurriedly convened press conference in Kolkata minutes before CAA rules were notified, she asked, “Why do this only days before the Lok Sabha polls are scheduled to be announced?”

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath welcomed the move and thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for this “humanitarian decision”. “The decision to implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act for the welfare of the ‘Pidit Manavta’ (suffering humanity) is historic.

“This has paved the way for a respectable life for minority communities suffering from religious brutality in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan,” the BJP leader said in this post on X. Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the government delivers whatever Prime Minister Modi promises.

BJP chief spokesperson Anil Baluni said the government has “fulfilled its guarantee”. He lauded Modi and Shah for the “historic” decision. “With this notification, PM Shri Narendra Modi Ji has delivered on another commitment and realised the promise of the makers of our Constitution to the Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians living in those countries,” Shah posted on X.

Union Minister Smriti Irani said in a post on X, “11th March 2024: A Historic Day as CAA becomes a Reality with Modi Ki Guarantee!” “Our government stands firm in its resolve to provide a secure and welcome environment for all persecuted minorities, ensuring their dignity, rights and aspirations are protected,” she added.

A wave of celebration erupted in parts of West Bengal inhabited by the Matua community whose members said it was their “second independence day”. Matuas, originally from East Pakistan and headquartered in Thakurnagar, North 24 Parganas, are a weaker section of Hindus who migrated to India during the Partition and after the creation of Bangladesh.

They celebrated the occasion by beating drums and exchanging pleasantries and also expressed their gratitude towards Prime Minister Modi. The community, with an estimated population of three million in the state, can tilt the scales in favour of a political party in more than 30 assembly seats in Nadia, and North and South 24 Parganas districts bordering Bangladesh.

Strongly opposing the move to implement the CAA ahead of polls, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said people will respond to it in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In a long post in Hindi on X, Kejriwal alleged that the implementation of the CAA is “dirty politics” of the BJP to make poor people from neighbouring countries its vote bank in India.

Noting that the Modi government has brought CAA ahead of Lok Sabha polls, he said, “Instead of solving the real issues, they have brought CAA.” The AAP chief said the BJP is saying that minorities from neighbouring countries will be given Indian citizenship. “Why? To create their vote bank,” asked.

Attacking the Centre, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav termed the move as BJPs’ game of distraction. “The public has now understood the BJP’s game of politics of distraction,” Yadav said in a post on X.

In her post on X, BSP chief Mayawati said, “Instead of implementing the citizenship amendment law before the election, it would have been better to implement it only after clearing doubts, confusion and fears.” AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi dubbed the CAA as divisive and based on “Godse’s thought that wanted to reduce Muslims to second-class citizens”.

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Didi Says No To CAA, NRC In Bengal

The CM also targeted the BJP-led central government over the issue of Manipur violence, saying the Centre sent over 400 teams to Bengal….reports Asian Lite News

West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said that her government will not allow the implementation of CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) or NRC (National Register of Citizens) in the state.

The CM also targeted the BJP-led central government over the issue of Manipur violence, saying the Centre sent over 400 teams to Bengal. “How many teams did you send to Manipur, where our sisters were burned?” she asserted.

CM Banerjee, while addressing the TMC Mahila Wing Rally in Kolkata, said, “We will not allow CAA, nor NRC, nor the politics of dividing Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, nor the false politics of dividing the Matua community, nor the false politics of dividing Hindus and Muslims. We do not accept this. They sent over 400 teams to Bengal. How many teams did you send to Manipur, where our sisters were burned?”

Earlier in February, the West Bengal Chief Minister said that the government will not implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC) initiative and will provide separate cards to those whose Aadhaar card is deactivated.

“Those who are playing with the Aadhaar cards and trying to deprive people of their rights, people will throw them out of power. We will issue a separate card that will help to protect the citizen’s rights. We have prepared a portal named ‘Aadhaar Grievance Portal of West Bengal Government’. Those whose Aadhaar card has been deactivated should inform us as soon as possible so that they continue to enjoy their democratic, social and economic rights,” CM said.

The CAA, introduced by the Narendra Modi government, aims to confer Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants, including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians, who migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014.

Following the passage of the CAA by Parliament in December 2019 and its subsequent presidential assent, significant protests erupted in various parts of the country.

Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, while speaking at the Republic TV Summit 2024 on Thursday, reiterated that the Citizenship Amendment Act will be implemented before the Lok Sabha elections.

The Union Home Minister said, “This will be implemented before the elections…this is the law of the country, no one can stop it, this is set in stone, this is the reality.”

Shah also batted for the Uniform Civil Code, saying that this is not only the agenda of the BJP, but also the vision of the constitutional assembly and is included in Article 44 of the constitution.

“Unfortunately, UCC has been associated with religion. Today I want to tell the people of the country that UCC is not just the agenda of BJP, but since 1950 we have been saying that when we come to power, we will bring UCC to this country. Since 1950, ‘Uniform Civil Code’ has been a part of our manifesto. If you expect the State to be secular, then the laws of the State must also be secular. Personal laws based on religious domination can never give us a secular State,” Home Minister Amit Shah said. (ANI)

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CAA Will Be Implemented Before Lok Sabha Polls: Thakur

Thakur said that implementing CAA will not be delayed further and a method to complete the process faster is being discussed…reports Asian Lite News

Union Minister Shantanu Thakur on Monday reiterated Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which was passed by the Parliament in December 2019, will be implemented before the Lok Sabha elections.

On Shah’s statement, Shantanu Thakur said, “He explained to us that this is a very necessary constitutional event, and it is important to implement it. We have to give shelter to people coming from across the border and settle them too. No provision will take away the citizenship of current citizens.”

“The CAA will be implemented in such a way that there will be no role for state governments in it. They will not get any chance to create an environment of disturbance in the country,” Thakur told ANI on Monday.

Earlier in February this year, Amit Shah said that the CAA will be notified and implemented before the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

The Union Minister said that there are no hurdles to implementing the CAA.

“CAA will be implemented before the Lok Sabha polls. There is no hurdle to implementing CAA. The rules for implementing the CAA will be issued soon, and the process to grant Indian nationality to the beneficiaries will start soon after,” he said.

Thakur said that implementing CAA will not be delayed further and a method to complete the process faster is being discussed.

“CAA is already in the Constitution, now it just has to be implemented. It has to be implemented in the fastest way possible, and the Home Ministry has also thought about its process. If it is going to be done through the state, then it would never happen. The method that will be adopted will be done within a day. I have also spoken to the Home Minister many times in this regard and he has also assured that CAA will be implemented before the 2024 elections,” he said.

“CAA is a very big and right decision taken by the Center and its positive result and impact will be reflected in the votes,” the Union Minister added.

Thakur, who hails from North 24 Parganas’ Bongaon in West Bengal, claimed that the Matua community in the region will vote in favour of the BJP.

“About 45 per cent of the Matua community lives in Bongaon constituency. If we talk about West Bengal, 1.5 crore voters are from the Matua community, and a total of 2 to 2.5 crore will get citizenship. These voters have full faith in the BJP because the Prime Minister has introduced these people to the world, by visiting Bangladesh and by coming to Bengal’s Thakur Nagar. I believe that this introduction is a big thing. It was done by the BJP only; the Matua community will vote in favour of the BJP,” he said.

Matuas are a Scheduled Caste group that trace their ancestry to East Bengal. Many of them entered West Bengal after partition and after the formation of Bangladesh.

Today, Matuas constitute the second-largest SC population in West Bengal. Mostly concentrated in North and South 24-Parganas, they also have a presence in other border districts such as Nadia, Howrah, Cooch Behar, and Malda.

Shantanu Thakur thanked PM Modi, Amit Shah, and senior leadership for the opportunity to contest the Lok Sabha polls.

“I will give my best. My constituency people are with me. The Prime Minister has asked to win 42 seats, so we are working hard in that regard. The Home Minister has also said that 35 seats is our target, we will take as many seats as our Prime Minister and Home Minister want. We are trying our best to win all the seats,” Thakur said.

The CAA, introduced by the Narendra Modi government, aims to confer Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants, including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians, who migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014.

Following the passage of the CAA by Parliament in December 2019 and its subsequent presidential assent, significant protests erupted in various parts of the country.

Shantanu Thakur, a prominent leader of the Matua community, entered politics just before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He secured victory in the Bongaon (SC) Lok Sabha seat, which has a significant Matua population, by an impressive margin of 1,11,594 votes, capturing around 48 per cent of the total votes cast. (ANI)

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CAA Final Draft By March-End: Minister

Ajay Mishra Teni also held a press conference and informed that work is ongoing for the CAA act as the committees of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are working on it….reports Asian Lite News

Union Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni on Sunday said that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) will definitely be implemented in the upcoming months adding that legislative committee of Rajya Sabha has set the deadline to frame rules by March 30 in 2024.

Addressing a public meeting in North 24 Paraganas, Ajay Mishra Teni said,” There are many political parties which spread anarchy when CAA was passed. These parties have also gone to the Supreme Court and filed petitions. There are 220 petitions filed by opposition parties against us. We are definitely going to make a law on CAA. We will definitely fight our case in the Supreme Court to uphold this law. This is our promise. CAA will definitely be implemented.”

Earlier in the day, Ajay Mishra Teni also held a press conference and informed that work is ongoing for the CAA act as the committees of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are working on it.

“This bill was passed in Lok Sabha on Dec 9, 2019. In Rajya Sabha, it was passed on Dec 11, 2019. On December 12 it was made an Act. On January 10, 2020, the Act came into force. After becoming an Act, there are certain laws and regulations to be framed. The legislative committee of Lok Sabha has set the deadline for January 9 next year. The legislative committee of Rajya Sabha has set the deadline for March 30, 2024. Definitely, the CAA will be implemented.”

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 aims to facilitate the grant of citizenship to migrants belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian communities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who entered India on or before 31.12.2014.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 was notified on December 12 and came into force on January 10 in 2020. (ANI)

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‘India stands by its CAA commitment’: Doval assures Afghan sikhs

India will sympathetically look at cases of members of the minority community in Afghanistan applying for visas, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval has said and noted that New Delhi will stand by its commitment to Sikhs and Hindus in the neighbouring country.

“The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) clearly states that in case any of the minorities in our neighbouring countries are persecuted on the basis of their religion…we have given visas to large number of Sikhs,” Doval said in an exclusive interview with ANI.

“As flights are available, some of them will be coming back, others will apply, we will look at their cases very sympathetically,” he added.

He was responding to a question on the CAA and if India will be giving visas to more people of minority communities in Afghanistan.

Doval termed the attack on Karte Parwan Gurdwara in Kabul on Saturday last that resulted in the death of two persons as very unfortunate.

“It was a very unfortunate incident. Should not have happened. There are forces…terror and violence these are things with which we have to live in modern times. The Government of India is doing everything. It has assured the Sikhs and Hindus out there that India will stand by its commitment,” he said. added.

Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) took responsibility for Karte Parwan Gurdwara attack in Kabul.

Following the attack on on the gurdwara, India decided to grant e-visas to over 100 Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan on priority.

There have been other attacks and incidents of violence against religious minorities in Afghanistan.

Hardeep Puri meets family of Sikh man killed in Kabul, presents PM’s letter to Afghan Sikh community.(Photo: Hardeep Puri/Twitter)

In October last year,15 to 20 terrorists entered a Gurdwara in the Karta-e-Parwan District of Kabul and tied up the guards.

In March 2020, a deadly attack took place at Sri Guru Har Rai Sahib Gurudwara in Kabul’s Short Bazaar area in which at least 27 Sikhs were killed. Islamic State terrorists claimed responsibility for the attack. (ANI)

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In a first, activist Akhil Gogoi wins from jail

46-year-old Gogoi bagged the Sibsagar constituency by a decisive margin of 11,875 votes without hitting the poll campaign…Sujit Chakraborty

Jailed anti-CAA activist and prominent peasant leader Akhil Gogoi has become the first lawmaker in Assam to win an election from jail after his octogenarian mother and prominent rights leaders of the country campaigned for him.

Without hitting the poll campaign, 46-year-old Gogoi clinched the Sibsagar constituency, defeating his nearest BJP opponent Surabhi Rajkonwari by a decisive margin of 11,875 votes.

Gogoi secured 57,219 votes (46.06 per cent) while Rajkonwari bagged 45,344 votes (36.5 per cent) and Congress nominee Subhramitra Gogoi managed 19,329 votes (15.56 per cent).

The founder president of the newly floated Raijor Dal (RD), Gogoi was arrested in December 2019 on sedition charges after he spearheaded the massive protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) in Assam.

Akhil Gogoi(Wikipedia)

The weeks long violent agitations against the CAA had rocked Assam in which five people were killed in police firing.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) took up Gogoi’s case for his alleged involvement in the violent anti-CAA demonstrations across the state.

Besides the Raijor Dal, the Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) was also formed as a consequence of the anti-CAA agitations.

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Both the parties in alliance had fielded over 100 candidates across Assam, but only Gogoi has emerged victorious.

An inmate of the Central Jail in Guwahati, Gogoi is currently undergoing treatment at the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital.

Akhil Gogoi(Twitter)

Gogoi’s 84-year-old mother Priyoda Gogoi and son Nasiketa had spearheaded his election campaign before the first phase of elections in eastern Assam on March 27.

Rights activist Medha Patkar, Magsaysay award winner Sandeep Pandey, many students of Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University and intellectuals and activists from different parts of the country and Assam had come to Sibsagar campaign for Gogoi.

Hundreds of volunteers and members of the Raijor Dal took Priyoda Gogoi to the doorsteps of the voters and heavily campaigned against the new citizenship act, which was approved in the Parliament in 2019, granting automatic citizenship for non-Muslims from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, who came to India before December 31, 2014.

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