Congress accuses ruling CPI(M) in Kerala of using CAA for electoral gains
Thiruvananthapuram, Mar 26 (PTI) The Congress on Tuesday accused the ruling CPI(M) in Kerala of using the CAA for electoral gains, and said it is trying to alienate Muslim voters from the Congress on the "lie" that the grand old party did not oppose the controversial law.
Separately, veteran Congress leader A K Antony asserted that if the INDIA front, of which the Left parties are a part, comes to power, the legislation will be "thrown in the dustbin".
Congress Working Committee member and MP from Thiruvananthapuram Shashi Tharoor said that the Left front in Kerala is spreading "lies" and "distorting" the facts about the grand old party's role in opposing the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), right from its introduction as a bill in Parliament.
Tharoor said that the Communist party, "which contributed minimally" to the freedom struggle during its crucial years, is today "trying to reap its benefits for political points in the most disgracefully dishonest way".
Similarly, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly V D Satheesan accused Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan of misusing the CAA for political gains.
Satheesan said that Wayanad Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and various other UDF MPs have spoken against the CAA, details of which have been forwarded to Vijayan.
Despite that, the CM is lying and misusing the citizenship law to attract votes from the minorities, especially Muslims, the opposition leader alleged.
Both Tharoor and Satheesan were responding to Vijayan's recent and continuous attacks on the Congress, in which he claims the grand old party has been silent on the issue of the CAA since its introduction in the House to the notification of its rules.
Tharoor said that when the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was introduced in Parliament, he had not only opposed it but had also spoken in the debate, denouncing it, and had explained why it was unconstitutional, a violation of Article 14 and contrary to Indian history.
He said that the partition of India and the creation of Pakistan occurred as some people were of the view that their nationality was determined by their religion.
"However, the rest of the leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and B R Ambedkar, said religion is not the determinant of our nationhood," the Congress MP said.
Tharoor said that the Constitution makes it clear that a person's caste, creed, religion, language or place of birth is irrelevant to citizenship.
"So, for the first time, to introduce or to inject into the citizenship law a reference to religion by excluding one particular community is utterly shameful and to my mind, very clearly unconstitutional," he said.
The Congress MP further said that while each party in Kerala is competing with each other to oppose the CAA, the Left has been spreading "lies and distortion" about the role of the grand old party in this process.
Tharoor said that after the introduction of the Citizenship Bill, he was the first MP to go and meet the protestors at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi and that he also spoke against the legislation at Jamia Millia Islamia and Jawaharlal Nehru universities.
"The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) organised protest meetings in all 14 districts of the state. I know very well how strongly and consistently the Congress has opposed the CAA. We have stood for free citizenship for all Indians, irrespective of their religion, since the days of the freedom struggle.
"For us, to stand here and be told by the Communists, who in the days of the 'Jai Hind' and 'Quit India Movement' were supporting the British Empire, for them to lecture us on citizenship, is frankly a bit more than we can take," the Congress MP said.
Meanwhile, Congress stalwart and former union minister A K Antony said that if the INDIA bloc, which also includes the CPI(M), comes to power, then the CAA will be "thrown in the dustbin".
Antony said that he firmly believes that even the Supreme Court would agree that the legislation questions the basic structure of the Constitution.
He said that the Congress would go the distance to oppose citizenship based on religion.
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, with many opposition parties speaking out against the law, calling it "discriminatory".
For four years since then, the CAA could not be implemented because its rules had not been notified. On March 11, this year, just ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha polls schedule, the union government notified the CAA rules -- which made it a poll issue.
The Act grants citizenship to undocumented migrants of all religions -- except Muslims -- from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan who arrived in India before December 31, 2014. PTI HMP HMP ANE
