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Conrad K Sangma[/caption]
Guwahati, Sep. 9 (PTI): Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Monday told Union Home Minster Amit Shah that the Northeast has fears on the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill and urged him to take all the states of the region into confidence before bringing in the legislation again.
Addressing the fourth conclave of the North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) here in the presence of Shah, Sangma questioned whether the Centre will bypass discussions with the states before reintroducing the bill.
"What will happen after CAB? Will people continuously come from Bangladesh? Will there be any deadline or a continuous flow? We in Northeast have such fears," Sangma said.
He requested the Centre to invite all stakeholders to discuss and arrive at a consensus over the issue.
"We are under the sixth schedule. So will the CAB overlook local laws? Please invite us and look into the interests of the people of the Northeast. Remove our fears. I believe you (Shah) will take care of our fears," Sangma told the Union Home Minister.
The Bill provided for according Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after seven years of residence in India instead of 12 years, which is the norm currently, even if they do not possess any document.
The Lok Sabha had passed the bill on January 8 but it was not tabled in the Rajya Sabha.
Political parties supporting CAB on verge of suicide — Mizoram CM
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Zoramthanga[/caption]
Requesting Union Home Minister Amit Shah to exclude the Northeast from the purview of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga on Monday said that all political parties that supported the contentious bill are on the "verge of suicide".
Zoramthanga said this while addressing the fourth NEDA conclave here.
"If at all, it (the bill) has to be implemented, then please see if the Northeast can be excluded from it. I request you to look into the vulnerability of the region.
"The Citizenship Bill is a very very sensitive issue here. In most of the states where political parties supported it, they are on the verge of suicide," he said.
The Mizoram chief minister said, he has full faith in the present dispensation at the Centre and he believes that it will not take a decision that will adversely affect the interests of the region.
Biren Singh wants NRC in Manipur
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Manipur wants a National Register of Citizens (NRC) in the state like the one that has been prepared in Assam, Chief Minister N Biren Singh said on Monday, claiming many states in the northeast "need" it.
He said the Manipur Cabinet had already adopted a resolution in support of a citizenship roll in the state.
"We and many states in the northeast need NRC. The Manipur government has already taken a decision in the cabinet to have NRC," Singh told journalists on the sidelines of a meeting of the North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) here.
NEDA is the northeastern version of the BJP-led ruling coalition NDA at the Centre.
The Centre's view is very clear that no illegal immigrant will be allowed to stay anywhere in the country, he said, adding "that's a very clear message".
When asked how the state plans to implement the exercise, he said, it was a call the Centre had to take.
"It will be done through the central government. Assam has done it under the supervision of the Supreme Court. So, we are requesting the central government, and it will be done by them," he said.