BJP chief asks Opp if it wants to shield illegal foreigners; protests rock RS
The political warfare over the publication of the draft National Register of Citizens (NRC) escalated on Tuesday with BJP president Amit Shah leading the ruling dispensation’s charge against the Opposition both within and outside Parliament.
Shah’s aggressive posturing in the Rajya Sabha led to major uproar after he asserted the NDA Government has the courage to undertake the NRC exercise in Assam while the erstwhile regimes lacked guts to do so. Shah added fuel to fire by asking the Opposition whether it wanted to save illegal migrants from Bangladesh. Unable to restore order, Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu adjourned the Upper House for the day.
Taking part in discussion on the NRC after Naidu did away with the Question Hour, Shah said he had heard speeches from various Opposition leaders but no one mulled over the genesis of the NRC.
Narrating the background, he said identifying illegal migrants in Assam through the NRC was the basis of the Assam Accord signed by then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on August 14, 1985. “This was the Congress PM’s initiative. He (Rajiv Gandhi) did not have the courage. We have courage and we are doing it,” Shah said.
The charge led to vociferous protest by the Congress and TMC members who raised slogans. Verbal exchanges were also witnessed between the Treasury and Opposition benches with several ruling party members coming into the aisles. Amidst the din, Shah’s remarks asking whether the Opposition wanted “to save illegal Bangladeshis in Assam”, provoked the Congress and the TMC members to rush into the well raising slogans.
Naidu asked Home Minister Rajnath Singh to speak on the issue but the Opposition did not allow him forcing the Chair to adjourn the proceedings for 10 minutes at 1 pm. When the House reassembled, TMC leader Derek O’Brien and some of his party colleagues came into the Well of the House. Derek exchanged some sharp words with Naidu, who then adjourned the House for the day.
Shah said the NRC was the spirit of the Assam Accord, which sought to identify illegal migrants into Assam and prepare a list of Indian citizens. “This was the Congress PM’s initiative. NRC is being conducted on the Supreme Court order. There are 40 lakh people (missing in the list)... Whom do you want to saveij You want to save illegal Bangladeshis,” the BJP chief questioned.
Asserting that the NRC will be implemented “to the last full stop” as his party stands for national security and Indians’ rights, Shah asked Opposition parties to take a clear stand on the issue and not indulge in vote-bank politics.
later, dismissing criticism by parties like the Congress and the TMC, Shah told a Press conference that the process for the NRC, whose mandate is to identify illegal immigrants, was started in 2005, when the UPA was in power, but the Government lacked the courage “to throw out illegal Bangladeshis”. “It (NRC) will be implemented to the last full stop and comma,” Shah said.
Taking on West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, who has accused the BJP of pursuing a ‘divide and rule’ policy, Shah alleged that she saw a “vote bank” in illegal immigrants while his party was looking at the security of the country and rights of its citizens.
No Indian citizen should be concerned and natives of any other State living in Assam would not be touched, he said, adding, the NRC must be implemented firmly and fairly. The BJP has seized on the issue that resonates with its broader agenda of nationalism and Hindutva to corner Opposition parties in the election year, with Shah pitching the party as one standing for rights of Indians as opposed to its rivals who are concerned with the rights of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.
“The BJP is committed to the national security and safety of its citizens. This is our top priority. All other parties should clear their stand,” he said.
The Opposition was united in taking on the Government on the issue. leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said in the Rajya sabha the issue was humanitarian and nothing to do with caste or religion. Stating that it pertained to human rights, Azad said the Government should ensure that no one is harassed and legal assistance to be provided to those whose names do not figure in the NRC list. He also urged the Home Minister, who was present in the House, to ensure that if an applicant has any one of the 16 documents to prove his or her credentials of being an Indian citizen, it should be recognised.
“We don’t want any person to be driven out of the country. This is not only about 40 lakh people, if you consider their children, families, it comes to 1-1.5 crore people,” he said, adding the onus of proving identity as a citizen of India should lie upon not just an individual but the Government as well.
Ram Gopal Yadav (SP)claimed that the persons not included in the NRC include those of Hindus as well as Muslims, and even those from States like Bihar and UP. Sukhendu Sekhar Roy (TMC) said his party chief Mamata Banerjee said it should be withdrawn and the legal citizens of India should not be thrown out.
He said 40 lakh people have been rendered “nationless which is unique in the history of the world”. He claimed that Indian citizens as well as Government officials have been left out of the draft NRC list.
Roy said a misconception was being spread among the people that the exercise was being conducted in accordance with the Supreme Court’s directive and asserted that the right of the people to reside in any State as per the Constitution is being violated.
Prasanna Acharya (BJD) said the Home Minister should ensure that all irregularities in the NRC will be taken care of. While YS Chowdary (TDP) claimed that proper procedure was not followed in the exercise of compiling the NRC. TK Rangarajan (CPM) alleged that it was an illegal report and does not take into account several people from other parts of India who moved to Assam earlier.
Manoj Kumar Jha (RJD) said it cannot solely be a “heartless bureaucratic exercise” while Veer Singh (BSP) said an informed decision should be taken in this regard. Majeed Memon (NCP) said it was not an issue of people from one religion alone, but the constitutional values with regard to the rights of an Indian citizen are involved.
Biswajit Daimary (BPF), who hails from Assam, said the names were not included in the NRC list due to lack of documentary proof. Such people have been given time to submit the documents adding no action will be taken against those whose names are not in the NRC list.
Swapan Dasgupta (nominated) called for a “rigorous and fair scrutiny” adding “this NRC did not come out of thin air. It was preceded by a sustained agitation in which hundreds of people lost lives and in which there was huge emotional outpouring in Assam and in other parts of North-East,” he said.
Jose K Mani (KCM), D Raja (CPI), V Vijaysai Reddy (YSRCP), Tiruchi Siva (DMK) and Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa (SAD) also spoke.