The Government of India has announced that the amended Citizenship Act is going to come into effect from this day. Although it was passed in 2019, no clauses or rules of the law have been made so far. Now the Indian government is enforcing the law after completing that work.
The official name of the sections or rules of the amended Citizenship Act or CAA is the Citizenship (Amendment) Clause, 2024, said XA (ex-Twitter), spokesperson of the country's Union Home Ministry. According to this section, the application for citizenship in India can be done completely online.
According to the amended citizenship law, the minority Hindus, Buddhists, Parsis, Sikhs, Jains and Christians from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan who migrated to India before December 31, 2014 can apply for Indian citizenship.
Until now it was being said that if Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, Parsis, Jains and Sikhs came to India after suffering 'religious violence' from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, then they can apply for citizenship under this Act.
However, in the notification issued on Monday, the issue of 'religious violence' in those three countries has been completely excluded. Muslims are not mentioned in the new law.
Before and after the passage of the Act, there were widespread protests across India. About a hundred people died in those protests in different cities of the country including Delhi, Kolkata, Assam. Civic organizations, anti-BJP political parties, Muslim organizations participated in the protests. Women participated significantly in anti-CAA protests in all cities. Many people were also seen in that movement who were traditionally veiled and had never taken part in any movement before.
A large section of Muslims in India fear that the amended Citizenship Act will first grant citizenship to minorities from neighboring countries, and then take away citizenship in the name of updating the National Register of Citizens to identify Muslims.
Four years after law school?
Within six months after the passage of any law in both Houses of Parliament, notification is to be issued making rules or clauses of that law. In this case, the government has repeatedly extended the deadline for issuing rules for four years after the law was passed. However, BJP leaders including Home Minister Amit Shah have said that they will implement the CAA. In a meeting in Kolkata a few months ago, Mr. Shah. Now, a few days before the Lok Sabha elections were announced, the government announced the introduction of the Act.
On the other hand, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said in a press conference in the afternoon that she will not allow the CAA to be implemented in West Bengal, soon after the news broke that the CAA is likely to be implemented on Monday.
Why the decision to introduce the law just before the Lok Sabha polls? Question by Mamata Banerjee,
Why before the vote?
Mamata Banerjee also raised the question that if the law had to be introduced then why before the Lok Sabha polls? In his words, "If you had the courage, you would have done it earlier. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh also raised the same question.
He wrote in his X-Handle, "With nine additional times to enact the rule, the law was introduced just before the polls, which clearly shows that there is an attempt to polarize the polls, especially in West Bengal and Assam."
BJP leaders, including Amit Shah, have been saying for some time that the CAA will be implemented before the polls, but last week Prime Minister Narendra Modi held public meetings in two areas in West Bengal, which is home to the Matua (Namashudra people from East Bengal and Bangladesh). But Mr. in those two public meetings. Modi was silent on the introduction of CAA. Amit Shah announced that the CAA will be implemented before the polls.
Matua in West Bengal, refugees and CAA?
Analysts believe that if the CAA is implemented, there will be further polarization of Hindu votes across the country in favor of the BJP. That is why the Act is being introduced before the Lok Sabha polls.
But in West Bengal, this law has an added political significance. The 'Namashudra' or 'Matua' community and a large section of the refugee community constitute an important 'vote-bank' in West Bengal. After the independence of India, the Matuas migrated from East Pakistan along with their religious guru. They are basically a namashudra group and their main pilgrimage site is in Orakandi, Bangladesh. The Matua community and their clerics have been active in politics since independence. One-time Sangadhipati Pramath Ranjan Tagore was a Member of Parliament of the Congress party. His son, daughter-in-law and grandsons are also active in politics.
At one time these Matuas were known as the vote bank of the Left Front. From 2011 they started leaning towards Trinamool Congress. Refugees and Matuas are the deciding force in at least 30 assembly constituencies in West Bengal and in two Lok Sabha constituencies their votes decide victory or defeat. According to refugee leaders' estimates, nearly two million people still lack citizenship.
Although they also admit that all of them have somehow 'acquired' documents like voter card, ration card, Aadhaar card, even if they do not have citizenship documents through legal means. Therefore, they will not apply for new citizenship as per the amended Citizenship Act, a section of the refugee and Matua community leadership believes.
Two clear divisions have emerged among the Matuas over the CAA.
Will CAA ensure citizenship?
One part of the Matuas is towards the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, while the other part is towards the BJP. Shantanu Thakur, the head of the pro-BJP Matuas, is now the party's Member of Parliament and Union Minister. This section always wants them to get the right to citizenship when the amended Citizenship Act comes into force. Many people in this part of Matua who are BJP supporters have been expressing their dissatisfaction for a long time by asking why CAA is not being implemented. Union Minister Mr. Thakur himself expressed his anger against the top leadership of the party.
Again, Bengali refugee movement leader and writer Sukriti Ranjan Biswas said a few days ago, "We have repeatedly said that no one will get citizenship with CAA. If this law is implemented, many refugees and Matuas may be able to apply, but it is not a law to ensure citizenship."
"Again, proof of the citizenship of the country where the applicant was a resident will also be required. Those who are working today after coming from other countries and obtaining Indian documents in various ways, will they dare to hand over the proof of citizenship of the old country to the government?" Said Mr. Biswas.
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