‘CAA will never be repealed… no provision to take away anyone’s citizenship’: Amit Shah

“They (Opposition) knows INDIA alliance won’t come to power. CAA has been brought by the BJP government, the Narendra Modi government. It’s impossible to repeal it,” Shah said.

Here are excerpts from Amit Shah’s interview:

On NRC and citizenship

Shah stated that the National Register of Citizens (NRC) has “nothing to do with the CAA”. He added that there was “no need for for minorities or any other person to fear because there is no provision in CAA to take away anyone’s citizenship”. “CAA is only to give rights and citizenship to Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Sikhs, Christians and Parsi refugees from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan,” he added.

Earlier in 2019, Shah had asserted that the NRC would follow CAA, leading to protests over the law’s “anti-Muslim design”.

On Assam

The notification of rules has again led to calls for protests in Assam. In 2019, the state saw multiple protests as the CAA was seen as a violation of the 1985 Assam Accord, which stipulated that only those foreigners who had come into the state before March 24, 1971 — and not December 31, 2014, as the CAA states — would be included as citizens.

Shah, in the interview asserted, “CAA will be implemented in Assam and other parts of the country. Only the States in the North East where two types of special rights have been granted, only those areas will not implement CAA. This includes the areas where there is a provision for the Inner Line Permit (ILP) and the areas that are granted special status under the 6th Schedule of the Constitution.”

On states not implementing CAA

“They also know they don’t have the rights. Article 11 of our Constitution gives all the powers to make rules regarding citizenship to India’s Parliament. This is a Centre’s subject, not the state’s… it’s not a combined subject,” Shah said, when asked about West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala saying they won’t implement CAA.

“I think everyone will cooperate after the elections. They are spreading misinformation for appeasement politics,” Shah added.

On ‘anti-Muslim’ allegations

“CAA does not violate Article 14 (right to equality). It’s a law for those who have faced religious persecution in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. It’s Constitutionally valid. There’s no stay over this law in the Supreme Court,” Shah said.

When asked about AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi’s allegations that the law is “anti-Muslim”, the Home Minister said, “The criteria is for those who are religiously persecuted. In Pakistan, which is an Islamic state, who will persecute Muslims?”

“We will also provide to citizenship to everyone if they apply. They can’t infiltrate,” Shah added.