Shah defends CAA amidst renewed opposition in Assam, calls it ‘justice for the deserving’

Guwahati, Aug 18: As opposition to the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) 2019 resurfaces in Assam, following the granting of citizenship to a Bangladeshi national in the state on August 14, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, on Sunday, asserted that the Act is about “delivering justice to the deserving”.

“CAA is not merely about granting citizenship; it is about delivering justice and rights to millions. Although the law was passed in 2019, the delay in granting citizenship occurred because minorities were misled. However, CAA does not take away citizenship from anyone,” Minister Shah said, during a citizenship certificate distribution programme under CAA in Ahmadabad.

Taking pot shots at the Congress and its allies, Shah criticised their “appeasement politics”, claiming that it denied justice to those seeking refuge from 1947 to 2014.

“They faced persecution in neighbouring countries because they were Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, or Jains, and were also mistreated in their own country. The INDI Alliance's appeasement politics failed to provide justice, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi has now ensured that they receive the justice they deserve,” he said.

Earlier on August 14, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the singing of the historic Assam Accord, the Union Home Ministry granted its first citizenship under the CAA to a Bangladeshi national residing in Assam.

Dulan Kumar Das, originally from Baragram in Sylhet district of Bangladesh, became the first individual in Assam to receive Indian citizenship through the CAA.

The decision sparked strong opposition, particularly from the All Assam Students Union (AASU).

The students’ body, which had played a pivotal role in the Assam Agitation, condemned the granting of citizenship to a Bangladeshi national, calling it a “betrayal of the Assam Accord”.

Enacted in December 2019, the CAA grants Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan who arrived in India on or before December 31, 2014.