Asaduddin Owaisi, the President of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM,) on the 4th of December, criticised the Central Government’s decision of clearing Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019.
Mr. Owaisi addressed the ANI and said, “Bringing CAB will be a dishonour to our freedom fighters because you will be reviving the two nation theory. As an Indian Muslim, I rejected Jinnah’s theory now you are making a law wherein, unfortunately, you will be reminding the nation of two nation theory.”
The comments of Mr. Owaisi came after the Union Cabinet cleared the Citizenship Amendment Bill. The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, seeks to provide citizenship to individuals who are Sikhs, Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, Christians and Parsis from countries like Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Opposition parties like the AIMIM, the Indian National Congress (INC) and others are opposing the Bill which would provide citizenship on the basis of religion.
Mr. Owaisi also compared the Bill to the two nation theory of Mohammad Ali Jinnah. Owaisi said during the freedom struggle, Jinnah Ali was successful in encouraging people to support the two nation theory, due to which India was partitioned and the Nation was divided into India and Pakistan.
Asaduddin Owaisi said, “This law also violates Article 14 and 21 because you are giving citizenship on the basis of religion which contravenes both the Articles. If we pass this law then it will be disrespect towards Mahatma Gandhi and Ambedkar, the architect of the Constitution,”
The Union Cabinet also mentioned northeastern states where the Inner Line Permit (ILP) is applicable would be excluded from the CAB. The northeastern states with ILP are Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and regions under the Sixth Schedule (Tripura, Mizoram and Meghalaya.)
The decision to exempt states like Meghalaya, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh is said to be due to their protest against the Bill. The northeastern states fear if the bill is passed, the refugees would get a residency in these States, undermining their ethnic living and traditional culture.
Owaisi raised a question against the exemption of northeastern states. He said “If media reports are correct that Northeast states will be exempted from proposed Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (CAB) law then it in itself is a great violation of Article 14 which is a fundamental right. You can’t have 2 laws on citizenship in the Country.”
After the clearance from the Union Cabinet, the Bill would be tabled during the ongoing Winter Session of the Parliament.
Rajnath Singh, the Defence Minister of India, is likely to present the Bill in the Lok Sabha for discussion. However, it is expected the Bill would be passed with a majority in the Parliament, as the majority of Members of Parliament (MPs) are from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP.)
The Winter Session of Parliament started from the 18th of November and would continue till the 13th of December.
Stay tuned for further updates.
