Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the NRC issue assured no Indian citizen will leave the country. (Express photo by Praveen Khanna)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured the people raising concerns on the National Register of Citizens (NRC) that no citizen of India will have to leave the country. “As per the due process, all possible opportunities will be given to get their concerns addressed,” Modi was quoted as saying by ANI. His comments come after a heated exchange of words between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Opposition regarding NRC in Assam.
BJP President Amit Shah, who was in West Bengal for the first time since the release of the NRC draft on Saturday, targetted West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee while addressing a public rally and questioned, “We want to ask Mamata Banerjee why is she protecting the Bangladeshi infiltrators. All that she has done is protest the NRC, but it is the process to throw illegal migrants out. Shouldn’t Bangladeshi migrants be thrown out?”
The first draft of the NRC was released on July 30 which excluded nearly 40 lakh people in Assam. Of the 3.29 crore people who had filled in applications in 2015, as many as 2.89 crore people found their names in the draft list. The draft was severely criticized by the opposition and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.
The TMC chief slammed the Centre over the draft and said that the NRC exercise in Assam was done with a ‘political motive’ to divide people and it would lead to ‘bloodbath’ and a ‘civil war’ in the country. She also penned a Bengali poem titled ‘Identity‘ lashing out at BJP which was posted on her Facebook page.
Mamata Banerjee has criticized BJP over the NRC draft.
When asked about Banerjee’s comments, Modi told ANI, “Those who have lost faith in themselves, fear loss of popular support and lack faith in our institutions can use words like ‘civil war’, ‘blood bath’ and ‘Desh Ke Tukde Tukde.’” He added that the West Bengal chief minister was disconnected from the pulse of the nation.
The political slugfest between BJP and the opposition parties has been on ever since the first draft of the NRC was released.