Amit Shah claimed that no Indian would lose their citizenship because of the law (representation)
New Delhi:
The Home Office has asked for three more months for the drafting of the rules for the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), officials said on Sunday.
The plea was made before the Department’s Standing Committee for Subordinate Legislation because, according to the Handbook on Parliamentary Work, the rules of all legislation must be drafted within six months of presidential assent or an extension must be requested.
The controversial CAA, which makes it easier to grant Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim minorities in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, was passed by parliament almost eight months ago and has led to protests in different regions from the country.
The president gave his assent to the legislation on December 12, 2019.
“The Interior Ministry requested an additional three months to frame the rules of the CAA. The plea was made before the Departmental Standing Committee for Subordinate Legislation,” said a senior official at the PTI.
The Home Office’s decision came after the panel inquired about the state of CAA rules.
The committee is likely to agree to the request, the official said.
The objective of the CAA is to grant Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities – Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsi and Christians – in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.
People from these communities who had come to India until December 31, 2014 due to religious persecution in these countries will not be treated as illegal immigrants but will be granted Indian citizenship.
After the adoption of the CAA by parliament, widespread protests were observed across the country. Opponents of the CAA argue that it discriminates on the basis of religion and violates the Constitution. They also claim that the CAA and the National Citizen Registry aim to target the Muslim community in India.
However, the Union’s Home Secretary, Amit Shah, dismissed the allegations and called the protests against the CAA “mainly political”. He had claimed that no Indian would lose their citizenship because of the law.
Clashes between pro and anti-CAA groups degenerated into community riots in northeast Delhi earlier this year, which left at least 53 dead and around 200 injured.
Lok Sabha adopted CAA legislation on December 9, 2019 and Rajya Sabha on December 11, 2019.
The Handbook on Parliamentary Work states that “statutory rules, regulations and orders shall be drawn up within six months from the date of entry into force of the relevant statute”.
The manual also specifies that in the event that ministries / departments are not able to define the rules within the prescribed six-month period, “they should request an extension of the deadline from the Committee on Subordinate Legislation indicating the reasons for it. such an extension “which cannot be more than for a period of three months at a time.
(Except for the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is posted from a syndicated feed.)
