Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is against the secularism of the country. No one here has the right to decide citizenship on the basis of religion. Our country works on the principle of secularism mentioned in the Constitution of India. Nowadays efforts are being made to destroy secularism. A certain class of people are particularly worried about this.
Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday said his government will not implement the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).
“The government’s position on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is clear and it will continue,” the chief minister said at a function to mark the conclusion of the first anniversary celebrations of his government in Kerala.
He said those in responsible positions have often said that the law will be implemented. He said, ‘The state government has a clear stand on this matter. There will be no change in this.
Vijayan said that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is against the secularism of the country. He said that no one here has the right to decide citizenship on the basis of religion.
According to news agency ANI, the Chief Minister said, ‘Our country works on the principle of secularism as enshrined in the Constitution of India. Nowadays efforts are being made to destroy secularism. A certain section of people are particularly worried about this. In a recent incident, a group of people was determining citizenship on the basis of religion. The Kerala government has taken a strong stand against this incident.
“Many surveys are being conducted in different parts of the country to create communal tension among the people, but here a survey has been completed to identify the poorest families of our society. Further action will be taken under this survey.
Speaking at the first anniversary celebrations of the LDF government, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan reiterated that the state would not implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
Vijayan said, “The state government has taken a strong stand that citizenship will not be determined on the basis of religion.”
Stating that the Constitution is supreme to decide such matters, he said the state government has taken this stand on the issue on the basis of constitutional principles.
Last month, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said in West Bengal’s Siliguri that the law would be implemented after the COVID-19 pandemic was over.
Amit Shah had said, ‘We will implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), the moment the COVID-19 wave ends.’
The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 which was passed by the Parliament of India on December 11, 2019, but is yet to be implemented.
Let us inform that after the enactment of this law, there was a period of protests across the country for months, which came to a halt due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The law has been described by critics as anti-Muslim and unconstitutional.
Under the CAA, non-Muslim minorities who came to India from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh on or before December 31, 2014, will be given Indian citizenship in a fast-track manner. However, until the rules are made, the law cannot be enforced.
In May last year, the central government allowed people belonging to the Hindu, Muslim, Jain, Parsi, Christian and Buddhist communities from the above three countries, living in 13 districts of India, to apply for citizenship of the country. However, the applications were sought under the Citizenship Act, 1955, as the rules relating to the Amendment Act (CAA) are yet to be finalised.
(with input from news agency language)
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Categories: Politics