Citizenship (Amendment) Bill: Kerala, Punjab to not implement bill

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The  Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019 will not be implemented in Punjab and Kerala, the chief ministers of the two states announced even as the contentious bill was passed by both Houses of the Parliament.

The Bill, which proposes to give citizenship to non-Muslim migrants who have come to India from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh facing religious persecution there, was passed by Rajya Sabha on December 11 and by Lok Sabha on December 9.

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A day after the bill was passed, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh took to Twitter and said that "the strength of the country lies in its diversity" and that CAB "violates the basic principle of the Constitution". Hence, the Congress-led government in Punjab will not implement the Bill.

Any legislation that seeks to divide people on religious lines is illegal, unethical & unconstitutional. India's strength lies in its diversity and #CABBill2019 violates the basic principle of the constitution. Hence my govt will not allow the bill to be implemented in Punjab.

— Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) December 12, 2019

The chief minister also issued a statement in which he said that the Bill was a direct assault on India's secular character and the Parliament had "no authority" to pass a law that "defiled" the Constitution and violated its basic principles.

Any legislation that seeks to "divide the people of the country on religious lines is illegal and unethical, and could not be allowed to sustain," Singh said in a statement.

The move is retrograde and regressive and seeks to take India back from the progressive charter mandated by its Constitution, he charged.

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Similarly, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the Bill will not be implemented in the state.

Lashing out at the BJP-led government, Vijayan said the "unconstitutional Bill" will have no place in Kerala and the state will not implement it.

Our democracy is in danger. With CAB, Sangh Parivar has used the majority they enjoy in the parliament to uproot the bedrock of Indian democracy & Constitution. It's a rejection of secularism. BJP has made it clear that their main political plank is communalism. We must resist.

— Pinarayi Vijayan (@vijayanpinarayi) December 12, 2019

While asking the people to oppose the Bill, Vijayan claimed that the proposed law is a "rejection of secularism" and that the saffron party had made it clear that its "main political plank is communalism".

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is also opposing the implementation of CAB in the state. The CM has convened a meeting of party MPs and MLAs on December 20 to devise a strategy in order to counter the Bill.

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During the discussion on the Bill in Rajya Sabha, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the legislation would be enforced across the country.

(With inputs from PTI)