National Register of Citizens (NRC) Will Rid Assam of Infiltrators: Amit Shah

LAKHIMPUR: BJP president Amit Shah has termed the Pulwama attack “cowardice” and said that the sacrifice of the martyrs will not go in vain. He also promised to bring the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill for the entire country and also ensure that the National Register of Citizens (NRC) will rid Assam of all infiltrators.

Shah was addressing a BJP youth rally in Lakhimpur district on Sunday. “By killing our soldiers, if you think you have won the battle, then you’re wrong. Be it in the Northeast or in Kashmir, the BJP government has never tolerated a threat to India’s security. Our government is committed to fighting against terrorism and we have proved it in the past through the surgical strikes as well as through diplomacy. The whole world accepts the political will of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to fight against terrorism,” Amit Shah said.

Promising not to let Assam become another turmoil-ridden State like Jammu & Kashmir (J&K), the BJP chief defended the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 and said, “We’ve put a stop to infiltration by bringing the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam. If we come to power again, we will bring the CAB to identify and deport each one of the illegal Bangladeshis living in Assam.”

Claiming that there was a misinformation campaign over the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019, he added, “Things are going to be very bad in Assam given the demographic changes that are taking place here. But some people want to use the anger over this Bill for their petty benefits.”

Amit Shah questioned the roles of the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and the Congress governments in implementing the Assam Accord and said that none of these parties took any steps to stop infiltration.

Referring to Clause-VI of the Assam Accord, which assures a constitutional safeguard for the indigenous people of the State, Shah said the Modi government has constituted a high-powered committee for its implementation and it will be implemented if the BJP comes back to power in the next elections.

The BJP president also highlighted the development work done by the Modi government in Assam and said that while the previous UPA government gave merely Rs 79,000 crore to the State, the NDA government has so far sanctioned close to Rs 3 lakh crore under different schemes and in the 14th Finance Commission award.

He appealed to the people of the Northeast to vote for the BJP in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections and said that the BJP is bound to come back to power.

On the other hand addressing the gathering, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said that PM Narendra Modi gave “life and vitality to all the North Eastern States including Assam by terming it ‘Astalaksmi’. Assam is also progressing now because of the good will of the Prime Minister who has paid much importance towards the State.” He called upon the youth activists of the party to concentrate to work to win the 14 Parliamentary seats in the State in the upcoming election. In his lecture, the Chief Minister underlined the developmental activities and success of the Union and State governments.

Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarmah inspired the the party workers to work to win each and every Parliamentary constituency of Assam in the next general election. He said that the BJP government must come back at the Center in order to save Assam from becoming a second Kashmir. Earlier, BJYM State president Anup Barman targetted AASU and thirty organizations as well as the KMSS and the other 70 organizations over the Citizeship Bill while delivering the welcome address.

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