New Delhi: Even as JD (U) helped Citizenship (Amendment) Bill sail through in Parliament, party leader Prashant Kishor expressed his dissent over it saying that the CAB and National Register of Citizens (NRC) together will be a “lethal combo” in the hands of government to “systematically discriminate and prosecute people based on religion”.
Taking to Twitter, Kishor said, “We are told that #CAB is a bill to grant citizenship and not to take it from anyone. But the truth is together with #NRC, it could turn into a lethal combo in the hands of Government to systematically discriminate and even prosecute people based on religion. #NotGivingUp.”
Yesterday, the JD (U) leader cautioned the party leadership on supporting the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB), saying that it must spare a moment for all those who reposed their faith and trust in it in 2015.
“While supporting #CAB, the JDU leadership should spare a moment for all those who reposed their faith and trust in it in 2015. We must not forget that but for the victory of 2015, the party and its managers wouldn’t have been left with much to cut any deal with anyone,” Kishor had said in a tweet.
However, this is not the first time when Kishor has gone public with his reservations regarding the CAB.
“Disappointed to see JDU supporting CAB that discriminates right of citizenship on the basis of religion. It’s incongruous with the party’s constitution that carries the word secular thrice on the very first page and the leadership that is supposedly guided by Gandhian ideals,” Kishor tweeted on Monday.
The Bill seeks to grant Indian citizenship to refugees from Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and Zoroastrian communities fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who entered India on or before December 31, 2014.
CAB get the nod of Parliament after Rajya Sabha passed it on Wednesday. As many as 125 members of the Upper House voted in favour of the Bill while 105 MPs voted against the Bill. The Shiv Sena did not participate in the voting.
The Bill, which grants citizenship to the non-Muslims who arrived in India before December 31, 2014, was approved by the Lok Sabha on Monday night with a majority of 311 votes against 80 votes where 391 members were present and voting.