NEW DELHI, Dec 12 (NNN-PTI) – The upper house of Indian parliament, or Rajya Sabha, passed the controversial Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB), Wednesday evening, officials said.
The bill will grant citizenship to illegal immigrants belonging to six religions – Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism, Parsi and Christianity – from neighbouring Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan. However, it kept out Muslims from applying.
A heated debate was witnessed in the house for hours, after which the bill was put to vote.
“After discussions, 125 members voted in favour and 105 against,” an official said.
The bill was introduced in the house by Home Minister, Amit Shah, who vehemently countered the opposition’s claims that the bill was an assault on the constitution.
Opposition parties criticised the bill as contrary to secular principles, enshrined in India’s constitution, as it excludes Muslims.
“Today marks a dark day in the constitutional history of India. The passage of the Citizenship Amendment Bill marks the victory of narrow-minded and bigoted forces, over India’s pluralism,” Congress Party chairperson, Sonia Gandhi, said in a statement.
The BJP government on Tuesday, easily managed to pass the bill in the lower house of parliament, Lok Sabha, because of its majority.
The CAB already triggered widespread protests in the country, especially in the northeastern states of Assam and Tripura, bordering Bangladesh, as locals fear immigrants will endanger their position.
Through the bill, the Indian government will grant Indian citizenship to those non-Muslim immigrants, who entered the country illegally, before Dec 31, 2014.
Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, described the passage of bill as a “landmark day for India.”– NNN-PTI