KOLKATA: Mounting a strong defence of the new citizenship law, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the dispute that has arisen over it has made the world take notice of the persecution of minorities in Pakistan, which now has to answer for its “acts of oppression”.
“Had we not amended the citizenship law, this ‘vivaad’ (dispute) would not have arisen. Had this dispute not arisen, the world would not have known the kind of atrocities that were perpetrated on the (religious) minorities in Pakistan. “….how human rights have been violated.
How the lives of our sisters and daughters were ruined.
It’s the result of our initiative that Pakistan will have to answer for its acts of oppression against the minorities there,” he told a gathering at Belur Math, the headquarters of Ramakrishna Mission.
“The CAA is not about taking away citizenship, it is about giving citizenship. Today, on National Youth Day, I would like to tell this to the youth of India, West Bengal, North East that this is not an overnight law for giving citizenship.
“We must all know that any person of any religion from any country of the world, theist or atheist, who believes in India and its Constitution, can apply for Indian citizenship through due process. There’s no problem in that,” he told the gathering at Belur Math.
He said the citizenship law was only “changed a little” for those who were ill-treated in Pakistan after Partition.
“They were having a bitter time living there. Women were in danger of losing their pride. Young people have understood the whole thing but those who want to indulge in politics over it will not,” he said.
In his speech, Modi invoked Mahatma Gandhi and said even the Father of the Nation had favoured Indian citizenship for those fleeing religious persecution and that his government has only delivered on the wishes of freedom fighters.
“We’ve only done what Mahatma Gandhi had said decades ago. Should we send these refugees back to die? Are they our responsibility or not? Should we make them our citizens or not?” he said, evoking a thunderous applause by the gathering. (PTI)
