The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019 has become a law after the node of President of India. The Bill seeks to amend the definition of an illegal immigrant for Hindu, Sikh, Parsi, Buddhist and Christian immigrants from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, who have lived in India without documentation. They will be granted fast-track Indian citizenship in six years. So far 12 years of residence has been the standard eligibility requirement for naturalisation.
What is its purpose of CAB-2019?
The legislation applies to those who were “forced or compelled to seek shelter in India due to persecution on the ground of religion”. It aims to protect such people from proceedings of illegal migration. The cut-off date for citizenship is December 31, 2014, which means the applicant should have entered India on or before that date. Indian citizenship, under present law, is given either to those born in India or if they have resided in the country for a minimum of 11 years. The Bill also proposes to incorporate a sub-section (d) to Section 7, providing for cancellation of Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) registration where the OCI card-holder has violated any provision of the Citizenship Act or any other law in force.
What is Central Government logic behind the bill?
Centre says these minority groups have come escaping persecution in Muslim-majority nations. However, the logic is not consistent – the bill does not protect all religious minorities, nor does it apply to all neighbours. The Ahmedia Muslim sect and even Shias face discrimination in Pakistan. Rohingya Muslims and Hindus face persecution in neighbouring Burma, and Hindu and Christian Tamils in neighbouring Sri Lanka. The government responds that Muslims can seek refuge in Islamic nations, but not in India.
Is it like Partition, is that true?
Mr Amit Shah says that the Bill would not have been necessary if the Congress did not agree to Partition on the basis of religion. However, this statement of Mr Shah is absolutely wrong as India was not created on the basis of religion, Pakistan was. Only the Muslim League and the Hindu Right advocated the two-nation theory of Hindu and Muslim nations, which led to Partition. All the founders of India were committed to a secular state, where all citizens irrespective of religion enjoyed full membership.
How much of Northeast does the Bill cover?
CAB won't apply to areas under the sixth schedule of the Constitution – which deals with autonomous tribal-dominated regions in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. The bill will also not apply to states that have the inner-line permit regime (Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram).
What is the connection between NRC & CAB in Assam?
A significant official document dealing with refugees/illegal immigrants was the Assam Accord of 1985. According to the central government, the National Register of Citizens (NRC) gives effect to that Accord, which the Centre, the Assam government, the All Assam Students Union (AASU) and All-Assam Gana Sangram Parishad (AAGSP) had signed.
In the Accord, it was settled that immigrants who came to Assam before 1 January 1966 would be given citizenship. Those who entered Assam between 1 January 1966 and 24 March 1971 would be “detected in accordance with the provisions of the Foreigners Act, 1946 and the Foreigners (Tribunals) Order 1964.” Thereafter, they would remain disenfranchised for ten years. Lastly, those who came to Assam after 24 March 1971, would be detected and expelled.
The CAB has to be viewed along with the NRC, which, in Assam, has already excluded 19 lakh people, of whom 13 lakh are Hindu. This is now being touted by Union Home Minister Amit Shah as a template to be applied across India. To be considered citizens, NRC calls for documents as old as seven decades, and proof that a person and their three generations have been living in India.
The BJP was initially very enthusiastic about the NRC, but now it is in a Catch 22 situation, since a large number of Hindus, mainly Bengali-speaking people, have been excluded in Assam. Hence, CAB is being brought in to allow the left out non-Muslims to apply for citizenship.
But the 13 lakh excluded Hindus have already claimed that they are Indians, and they have submitted documents to prove their claims, which were rejected. How would these people now move to a different claim, that they are not Indian but Bangladeshi—and persecuted ones at that—and seek Indian citizenship?
Why is Assam angry about it?
Among the states in the Northeast, the outrage against CAG has been the most intense in Assam. While a chunk of these states have been exempted from the legislation, CAB overs a large part of Assam. The protests stem from the fear that illegal Bengali Hindu migrants from Bangladesh, if regularised under CAB, will threaten cultural and linguistic identities of the state.
Why there is a protest against NRC & CAB-2019?
The NRC is a register maintained by the union government of India that effectively lists out Indian citizens in Assam, and weeds out ‘infiltrators’. The register was first made for Assam, but on November 20, home minister Amit Shah said that it would be extended to the entire country.
** Point of view according to Indian constitution-
** Point of view according to Indian constitution-
Now the problem lies here that in Assam during NRC 19 lac people found illegal & among them 13 lac was Bengali Hindu. Now the role of CAB came into play as according to
CAB-2019 only Muslims which are illegally living in Assam or India are weeds out from India but as in Assam 13 lac Bengali Hindus can apply for Citizenship according to CAB -2019 all though they are also illegal immigrants.
CAB-2019 only Muslims which are illegally living in Assam or India are weeds out from India but as in Assam 13 lac Bengali Hindus can apply for Citizenship according to CAB -2019 all though they are also illegal immigrants.
The CAB ringfences Muslim identity by declaring India a welcome refuge to all other religious communities. This violates the Constitution’s Article 14, the fundamental right to equality to all persons. This basic structure of the Constitution cannot be reshaped by any Parliament. And yet, the government maintains that it does not discriminate or violate the right to equality.
So people in various places are protesting against CAB-2019 due to its nonconstitutional nature.
**Point of view according to Assames-
So people in various places are protesting against CAB-2019 due to its nonconstitutional nature.
**Point of view according to Assames-
Now, the above point of view is according to constitution about CAB but in Assam, there is nothing to do with the constitution . Assamese are protesting due to illegal immigrants whether they are Hindus or Muslims or belongs to any other religious community, they are against only illegal immigrants whatever their religion is. So Assamese are protesting CAB -2019 as illegal Hindu immigrants shall be given citizenship of India which are not the native of Assam. They are concerned about their native cultural heritage and resources of the state as these were compromised when illegal immigrants entered into the state with the help of CAB-2019.
In my opinion on NRC/CAB if India starts NRC & there are lacs of illegal immigrants which country will accept them back & what are the proof of their native country from where they belong. We have to put them in a detention centre for life long we all are aware of situation of Germany where lacs of Syrian refugees are living in shelters of German govt shelter & due to these refugees the economy of Germany affected badly. So India should rethink about NRC/CAB.
In the end, I only want to suggest that before the NRC/CAB Indian government should seize illegal immigration of people through borders so that no illegal immigrant can enter into India. This step will easily solve the problem for further future as the NRC can never be done in every year to check the illegal immigration of people.
©www.dynamicviews.co.in
In my opinion on NRC/CAB if India starts NRC & there are lacs of illegal immigrants which country will accept them back & what are the proof of their native country from where they belong. We have to put them in a detention centre for life long we all are aware of situation of Germany where lacs of Syrian refugees are living in shelters of German govt shelter & due to these refugees the economy of Germany affected badly. So India should rethink about NRC/CAB.
In the end, I only want to suggest that before the NRC/CAB Indian government should seize illegal immigration of people through borders so that no illegal immigrant can enter into India. This step will easily solve the problem for further future as the NRC can never be done in every year to check the illegal immigration of people.
©www.dynamicviews.co.in