CAA notification: Opposition leaders term it “divisive law”; will not implement, says Kerala CM

Ramesh said it took the Narendra Modi government four years and three months to notify the rules for the law cleared by Parliament in December 2019.

“After seeking nine extensions for the notification of the rules, the timing right before the elections is designed to polarise the elections, especially in West Bengal and Assam,” the Congress leader said.

“The prime minister claims that his government works business-like and time-bound. The time taken to notify the rules for the CAA is yet another demonstration of the prime minister’s blatant lies,” he said in a post on X.

दिसंबर 2019 में संसद द्वारा पारित नागरिकता संशोधन अधिनियम के नियमों को अधिसूचित करने में मोदी सरकार को चार साल और तीन महीने लग गए। प्रधानमंत्री दावा करते हैं कि उनकी सरकार बिल्कुल प्रोफेशनल ढंग से और समयबद्ध तरीक़े से काम करती है। सीएए के नियमों को अधिसूचित करने में लिया गया इतना…

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) March 11, 2024

Also Read: Modi government announces notification of CAA rules ahead of LS elections

‘Divisive law’

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan described CAA as a communally divisive law and asserted that it would not be implemented in the state.

“The Union government’s decision to notify the rules of the CAA just ahead of the elections is to upset the country. This is to divide people, incite communal sentiments, and undermine the very basic principles of the Constitution,” Vijayan said in a Facebook post in Malayalam.

He said the move could be seen only as the Hindutva communal agenda of the Sangh Parivar.

“Defining Indian citizenship in terms of religion is an open challenge to humanity, the country’s tradition and its people,” wrote Vijayan, adding that Kerala was the first state to pass an ordinance against CAA.

“This government had said several times that the CAA, which considers Muslim minorities as second-class citizens, would not be implemented in Kerala. And we are reiterating the same,” added Vijayan.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK chief MK Stalin also weighed in, calling the CAA the Union government’s “divisive agenda”, which has turned the Act “from a beacon of humanity to a tool of discrimination based on religion and race”

He added: “By betraying Muslims and Sri Lankan Tamils, they sowed seeds of division.”

Union BJP Government’s divisive agenda has weaponised the Citizenship Act, turning it from a beacon of humanity to a tool of discrimination based on religion and race through the enactment of #CAA. By betraying Muslims and Sri Lankan Tamils, they sowed seeds of division.

Despite… pic.twitter.com/mbraX6SW10

— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) March 11, 2024

‘Discriminates people’

On Monday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said she would oppose the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) if it discriminates against groups of people.

Stating that the CAA and the NRC are sensitive to West Bengal and the Northeast, Banerjee said she does not want unrest before the Lok Sabha elections.

Addressing a hurried press conference at the state secretariat, Banerjee said, “There are speculations that CAA ruled will be notified. Let me be clear that we will oppose anything that discriminates people.”

“Let them bring out the rules, then we will speak on the issue after going through the rules,” she said.

The rules for implementation of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) 2019 were notified on Monday, paving the way for granting citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, according to officials.

With the CAA rules being issued, the Modi government will now start granting Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan who came to India till December 31, 2014. These include Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians.

The CAA was passed in December 2019 and subsequently got the president’s assent, but there were protests in several parts of the country against it. Over a hundred people lost their lives during the anti-CAA protests or police action.

The law could not come into effect as rules had not been notified till now.

(With PTI inputs)