Three chief ministers—Amarinder Singh in Punjab, Pinarayi Vijayan in Kerala, and Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal—have claimed they will block the implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, which was recently made into law, in their states.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday gave his assent to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, turning it into an Act. According to an official notification, the Act comes into effect with its publication in the official gazette on Thursday.
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Thursday said the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was a direct assault on India's secular character and the Parliament had "no authority" to pass a law that "defiled" the Constitution and violated its basic principles. "The Congress government in the state, on its part, will not let the legislation rip apart the secular fabric of the country, whose strength lies in its diversity," Singh said. Any legislation that seeks to "divide the people of the country on religious lines is illegal and unethical, and could not be allowed to sustain," he said in a statement. The move is retrograde and regressive and seeks to take India back from the progressive charter mandated by its Constitution, he charged.
ALSO READ: Citizenship Bill passes in Parliament. But, a sterner test may await in Supreme Court
Kerala will not implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, announced Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday, adding that the contentious bill passed by the Parliament was 'unconstitutional'. Discrimination on the basis of religion would not be tolerated in Kerala, Vijayan said. “The Constitution guarantees the right to citizenship for all Indians, irrespective of their religion, caste, language, culture, gender or profession and this very right is being made void by the CAB,” the chief minister said at a press briefing in Thiruvananthapuram. He said the state government would inform the Centre about its stand on the issue. Launching a scathing attack on the Narendra Modi government, Vijayan said the CAB, which was cleared in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, was part of an RSS agenda to divide the country on the basis of religion.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was one of the most strident critics of CAB and the National Register for Citizens (NRC) from the earliest phases. She had told a gathering in Kharagpur, according to NDTV, "Don't be scared of this bill. We are with you, and as long as we are here, nobody can impose anything on you."
Two persons were killed on Thursday in police firing in Assam to quell protests against the citizenship bill with thousands descending on streets defying curfew as Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed his government was committed to safeguarding their rights. Several towns and cities were placed under indefinite curfew, including Guwahati, the epicentre of protests, besides Dibrugarh, Tezpur and Dhekiajuli. Night curfew was imposed in Jorhat, Golaghat, Tinsukia and Charaideo districts, officials said. Two persons were shot dead by security forces in Guwahati, which has turned into a garrison town with Army, paramilitary and state police personnel present in every nook and corner.
An official of the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital told PTI that one person was brought dead and another succumbed to injuries during treatment. However, protesters claimed three people had died in police firing. Hospital sources said 11 people were brought there with gunshot injuries.
-Inputs from PTI
