India: CAB row generated patriotism in NE

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Image credit: www.siasat.com/AFP

NJ Thakuria 18 February 2019

As if the people of the northeast (NE) India became more conscious about

 India’s constitution, rule of law and its secular image abroad.

So groups of people, including politicians, civil society group

representatives, media personnel etc came to hit the streets raising

strong voices against the Union government’s proposed citizenship

amendment initiatives.

The move by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to grant

citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian

refugees from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan ignited a firestorm

in the region. The tide against the government was prompted by the

arising apprehensions among northeastern indigenous people that they

would lose their due rights after it got realized.

The region, which has the history of separatist movements by various

militant groups, even observed a  Bandh (total shut down) on 8 January

2019 protesting against New Delhi based central government’s adamant

attitude to pass the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 in Lok Sabha,

the lower house of Indian Parliament.

The much talked CAB was scheduled to table in Rajya Sabha (upper house

of Parliament) on 13 February to get it finally enacted as a law after

necessary endorsements from the President of India. But at the last

moment, the BJP led NDA government avoided placing it and seemingly

left the bill to die a natural death.

Reasons, may be the BJP could not garner necessary supports from the

opposition parties or it faced an uproarious situation in various

parts of  the region, but it brought smiles to thousands of agitators

and many of them celebrated the occasion as an achievement. They

organized series of press briefings to extend their gratitude to the

common people and definitely never forget to claim their credits.

Oppositions to the amendment initiative surfaced as the Indian

citizenship cannot (must not) be conferred on the basis of religion

because it is a secular country. Otherwise it would go against the

spirit of the constitution of world’s largest democracy.

The other view was that Assam had already taken the extra burden of

illegal migrants (read Bangladeshi nationals from 1951 to 1971) in

contrast to national cut-off year (’51) because of an agreement signed

in 1985 between the leaders of historic Assam Movement and the Union

government in New Delhi. Hence agitators from the State’s Brahmaputra

valley vehemently opposed the proposal.

Guwahati on 23 January witnessed an impressive rally which was

organized by All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) along with 30 indigenous

groups to oppose the bill. The rally attracted over 3,000 strong

gathering from different parts of the region taking pledge not to

allow New Delhi to pass it. By the evening, Krishak Mukti Sangram

Samity (KMSS) along with  70 other local bodies organized a torchlight

procession in the city streets.

But perhaps not everyone was convinced with the arguments of agitators

as a massive public meeting in the outskirt of Guwahati showed a

different picture. Addressing the gathering of over hundred thousand

audiences at Changsari locality under Kamrup district on 9 February,

Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated that the concerned bill would

be honoured.

The spectacular congregation applaused PM Modi when he termed the

initiative as a moral responsibility for the centre to support the

asylum seekers from the Muslim dominated Afghanistan, Pakistan and

Bangladesh who had fled their countries of origin because of religious

persecutions there.

Anti-CAB protests gained momentum since the Joint Parliamentary

Committee (JPC) on the matter came to Guwahati last year for public

hearings. A number of indigenous organizations, local politicians,

intellectuals, media personalities etc assembled on the venue and

raised their voices against the bill.

However, the subsequent hearing at Silchar in Barak valley witnessed a

different picture as most of the organizations supported the

initiative. Even people of the valley were reluctant to join in the

anti-bill protests, when Lok Sabha passed the bill on 8 January.

BJP’s Assam  ally Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) pulled out of the

government in Dispur as its leaders, most of whom were once AASU

members, claimed that the proposed amendment would challenge the Assam

accord, signed by the agitators with the Centre in presence of the

then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, after culmination of the six-year

long Assam agitation.

Soon anti-CAB protests were joined by Meghalaya chief minister Conrad

Sangma. Later Mizoram chief minister Zoram Thanga, Manipur government Chief N Biren Singh, Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu also came out opposing the bill. Sangma later took the lead to organize various

local political parties of the region to stand against it.

Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal had however continued

supporting the move arguing that it would not affect the region.

Remaining silent over the matter for months, Sonowal started making

voluminous public comments that the Centre’s new initiatives would

only benefit the locals in the long run.

Strong arguments were put  by Assam’s outspoken minister Himanta B

Sarma as he asserted that the initiative would safeguard the Assamese

population. Expressing serious concern over the aggressive mentality

of Bangladeshi Muslim settlers, Sarma claimed that the initiative

would prevent Assam from becoming another Kashmir.

However, an eminent human rights activist argued that the proposed

amendment would have neither change the status quo on ground nor does

it allay long-standing concerns over the issue of refugees. Suhas

Chakma, who hails from Tripura, also added that vociferous support or

strident opposition to the bill was politically motivated.

Interacting with Guwahati based scribes, the New Delhi based rights

activist asserted that the bill had not introduced any new element

whatsoever as it proposed only to reduce the waiting period of

submitting applications for citizenship via naturalization from 11

years to 6 years.

“So it would make no difference as those who had come to India by 2007

can now apply for citizenship. If the bill is duly processed, the

asylum seekers could apply with the documents of 2012. Otherwise,

their turn will come in 2023 in due course,” stated Suhas adding that

anti-CAB rows would help nobody to pretend to be patriots.

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