Union Home Minister Amit Shah reiterated the government’s commitment to implementing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections during his address at the ET Now-Global Business Summit in New Delhi on Saturday.
Shah affirmed, “CAA is an Act of the country, it will definitely be notified. It will be notified before the polls. CAA will be implemented by the polls, and there should be no confusion around it.”
He reminded the audience that the CAA was initially promised by the Congress government, emphasizing that it was aimed at providing Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities from neighboring countries and not aimed at revoking anyone’s citizenship.
Shah clarified, “CAA cannot snatch away anyone’s citizenship because there is no provision in the Act. CAA is an act to provide citizenship to refugees who were persecuted in Bangladesh and Pakistan.”
The CAA, introduced by the Narendra Modi government, seeks to grant Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan who arrived in India before December 31, 2014.
In his remarks, Shah also touched upon the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, framing it as a contest between corruption and development. He emphasized that the election is about securing national security versus endangering it under the guise of foreign policy.
Following the passage of the CAA by Parliament in December 2019 and its subsequent presidential assent, the Act has been met with significant protests across the country, sparking debates and discussions on its implications.
The government’s reaffirmation of its intent to implement the CAA before the elections is likely to reignite discussions and debates on the contentious issue in the lead-up to the polls.
