Will implement CAA before Lok Sabha elections: Amit Shah
What's the story
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will be implemented in the country before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
He made the announcement at ET Now's Global Business Summit in the national capital of New Delhi.
Passed in December 2019, the CAA aims to grant Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants from three neighboring countries: Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.
Context
Why does this story matter?
The CAA was introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.
It offers Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim minority refugees—Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians—from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan who arrived in India before December 31, 2014.
The act sparked widespread protests after being passed by Parliament and receiving presidential assent in December 2019.
Notably, its implementation was a major poll plank of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the previous Lok Sabha elections and assembly elections in West Bengal.
What Shah said
CAA for granting citizenship, not taking it away: Shah
Addressing the gathering at the business summit, Shah stated, "The CAA is an act of the country, it will definitely be notified. It will be notified before the polls. There should be no confusion around it."
He also accused the former Congress government of backtracking on its promise to provide Indian citizenship to refugees.
Shah also claimed that the CAA was introduced to grant citizenship but not take it away.
Protests against CAA
Shah alleges minorities being provoked around CAA
Referring to the widespread protests following the passage of the CAA in December 2019, Shah said, "Minorities in our country, and especially our Muslim community, are being provoked."
"The CAA cannot snatch away anyone's citizenship because there is no provision in the act," he said.
Shah further clarified that the CAA was designed to provide citizenship to refugees who suffered persecution in Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Past statement
CAA is law of land, Shah said in December
Shah had previously vowed to implement the CAA on multiple occasions.
In December 2023, at a meeting in Kolkata, West Bengal, he said no one could prevent the CAA's implementation, as it was the law of the land.
Shah also accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of spreading misinformation about the issue. He also stated that implementing the CAA was the BJP's commitment.
To note, the Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress has been opposing the CAA.
Insights
Foreigners granted Indian citizenship in 2021
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, between April 1, 2021, and December 31, 2021, 1,414 non-Muslim minority immigrants were awarded Indian citizenship by registration or naturalization under the Citizenship Act of 1955.
Notably, over 30 district magistrates and home secretaries from nine states were empowered to offer Indian citizenship to these communities.
However, no authorities in Assam or West Bengal's politically sensitive areas have yet been awarded such powers.