Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday moved the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in the Rajya Sabha, saying that Indian Muslims "were, are and will remain Indian citizens".
Moving the bill that provides Indian citizenship to non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, Shah said minorities in the three nations do not get equal rights.
The population of minorities in these countries has reduced by as much as 20 per cent, either by way of elimination or having migrated to India, he said, adding that these migrants did not get rights to jobs and education.
"Misinformation has been spread that this bill is against Muslims of India. I want to ask the people saying this. How is this bill related to Indian Muslims? They are Indian citizens and will always remain, with no discrimination against them," he said, reported ANI.
Home Minister Amit Shah in Rajya Sabha: No Muslim in India needs to worry due to this Bill. Don't get scared if someone tries to scare you. This is Narendra Modi's Govt working according to constitution ,minorities will get full protection. #CitizenshipAmendmentBill https://t.co/6PYvZBEmwx pic.twitter.com/iNNwddZDaE
— ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2019
"No Muslim in India needs to worry due to this bill. Don't get scared if someone tries to scare you. This is Narendra Modi's government working according to the Constitution. Minorities will get full protection," he said.
The bill provides citizenship to these persecuted minorities, Shah said.
Several MPs of opposition parties moved a motion to send the Citizenship Amendment Bill to the select committee of the Upper House. The bill and the opposition motion will be put to vote after a debate on it.
AIADMK's 11 members and Akali Dal's six MPs are expected to support the bill. Regional parties like the BJD with seven MPs, and YSR Congress and the TDP with 2 each are also backing the bill.
The BJP has 83 members in the upper house. The allies, including the JD(U), will take the total number to 108. Four of the six Independent MPs and three of the four nominated MPs are also likely to support the bill.
The opposition camp includes Congress, TMC, BSP, Samajwadi Party, DMK, RJD, the Left, NCP and the TRS with 46, 13, four, nine, five, four, six, four and six members respectively, totalling 97. The support of Shiv Sena, Aam Aadmi Party and some smaller parties may take it near 110.
Shah rejected the charge of vote bank politics, saying the BJP had declared its intention to bring such a legislation in its election manifesto for the 2019 general election and won the approval of the people.
He said Indian Muslims have nothing to worry about as they "were, are and will remain Indian citizens".
Non-Muslim minorities from three nations who came to India after Independence will be given Indian citizenship, he said, adding that Muslim migrants from the world over cannot be given citizenship.
-Inputs from PTI
