Amit Shah gets Rajya Sabha clear Citizenship Bill amid protests

New Delhi: The BJP-led government on Wednesday secured parliamentary approval for the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, that makes religion a criteria for Indian citizenship, marking a fundamental shift in India’s secular ethos and claims.

The Rajya Sabha passed the Citizenship Amend-ment Bill (CAB) after almost nine hours of debate in which more than 40 MPs spoke.

The CAB, which seeks to provide Indian citizenship to non-Muslims who entered the country from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014, will now go to the President for his assent.

The bill, tabled by Union home minister Amit Shah in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday morning, was passed with 125 members voting in favour of the motion and 105 against it.

Prime Minister Naren-dra Modi welcomed the passage of the bill, calling it “a landmark day for India and our nation’s ethos of compassion and brotherhood”.

“A landmark day for India and our nation’s ethos of compassion and brotherhood! Glad that the #CAB2019 has been passed in the #RajyaSabha. Grati-tude to all the MPs who voted in favour of the bill. This bill will alleviate the suffering of many who faced persecution for years,” he tweeted.

Calling it a dark day in the constitutional history of India, Congress interim chief Sonia Gandhi said, “The passage of the CAB marks the victory of narrow-minded and bigoted forces over India’s pluralism. The bill fundamentally challenges the idea of India.” Several Opposition leaders delivered impassioned speeches against the bill that, they said, was contrary to the Constit-ution and the very idea of India as envisioned by its founding fathers.

Mr Shah, who took on the Opposition for questioning the basis of CAB, said it was necessitated because of Partition of country and has corrected a historic blunder.

The CAB makes it much easier for Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians fleeing Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan to become Indians. It also reduces the 11-year-long wait for citizenship for non-Muslims from these three countries to five years.  

He blamed the Congress for accepting Partition on the basis of religion and said that CAB will give protection to persecuted minorities from three neighbouring countries.

“When Partition happened, it was thought the minorities will get civil rights and lead a normal life, that they will be able to practice their own religion and protect their women. But when we look back, we see what the truth really is. These people did not get their rights. They were either killed, converted or came to India,” Shah said.

Describing CAB as a historic bill, Shah said it will rekindle a ray of hope among lakhs and crores of people who were harassed in neighbouring countries. “They took refuge (in India) but were barred from availing basic facilities like homes, jobs, healthcare and education,” he said.

The home minister also sought to assuage the concerns of Indian Muslims by saying they have nothing to fear as they are and will remain citizens of India and Indian citizens would not be affected by it.

“Muslims have nothing to fear. Confusion, misinformation is being spread that this bill is specifically against the Muslim community. For the Muslims of this country, there is no question of debate or concern. They are citizens (of India), will remain citizens and no one will harass them,” Shah said and added, “Indian Muslims are safe and shall always remain safe. I appeal to the Indian Muslims that please do not fall for misinformation. Please do not be misguided. Please do not live in fear. Live fearlessly.”

Opposition parties led by the Congress described the CAB as unconstitutional, saying it discriminates against refugees on the basis of religion, and cautioned the government that the legislation would not stand judicial scrutiny.  

Initiating the debate on the bill, Congress leader Anand Sharma attacked the BJP saying the manifesto of any political party cannot be above the Constitution of India.

On Wednesday, the BJP’s floor managers were able to secure the requisite numbers after having extensive talks with several non-NDA parties like the TD, YSRCP and the BJD. The votes of NDA ally JD(U) were also secured even as several of its leaders expressed concerns regarding the law.

Former NDA ally Shiv Sena, which had backed out of supporting the bill, despite voting for the legislation on Monday, boycotted the voting in Rajya Sabha. Rajya Sabha TV briefly stopped the live telecast of proceedings from when Opposition members heckled Shah over his claims of protecting Assamese interests.