Massive protests against Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) have disrupted normal life in the state of Assam. The northeastern state came to a grinding halt due to a day-long statewide strike called by nearly 20 organizations against the legislation.
Heavy security put in place as protests against Citizenship Amendment Bill continue in Dibrugarh, Guwahati and other parts in Assam.
While speaking at BJP Parliamentary party meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that CAB is a historic bill. “Some opposition parties are speaking the same language as Pakistan on the CAB. CAB will be written in golden letters for people who are persecuted on basis of religion”, he said.
On the other hand, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal asked protesters not to spread “misinformation” over the proposed legislation. Addressing an event in Tripura, he said that no one should allow ‘divisive forces’ to destabilize the state.
He said, “In order to put Assam strongly on the world map, we all must work with all dedication. Building a robust work culture in the state should be the prime objective of everyone and youths must not be misled to join agitations.”
The Lok Sabha on Monday passed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 after a six-hour long debate which saw a fiery speech by Union Home Minister Amit Shah defending the controversial Bill.
Among a total of 391 members present in the Lower House, 311 voted in favor of the Bill while 80 voted against it.
The Bill seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to make illegal migrants who are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, excluding Muslims, from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan eligible for Indian citizenship. The Bill relaxes the requirement of residence in India from 11 years to six years for these migrants.