NRC should not be a political issue: Prafulla Kumar Mahanta

GUWAHATI, Aug 14: “The BJP had promised to implement the National Register of Citizens of India (NRC). It is now gearing up to fulfill this promise. However, NRC is being pushed only for political gains,” said, State’s former Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, at a function in Pune on Tuesday. He was speaking at a function organized by Sarhad, Pune which included a public interview of Mahanta by Yuvraj Shah and Sriranjan Awate.

During the function, Mahanta further said, “If this bill is passed, the Hindus coming from Bangladesh will get Indian citizenship but it will push the local population into minority. No country in the world awards its citizenship to migrants from other countries. However, Israel is the only country which gives its citizenship based on one’s faith. It is essential that political interests should not drive NRC. The NRC, besides violating the Assam Accord has no parallel within India. Migrants to Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are not entertained in similar fashion, why is it happening only in case of Assam is a point to ponder.” Mahanta added, “In the decade 1951 to 1961, the people who came to Assam were given the right to vote. After the 1965 war many more people came to Assam and settled here. They too were accommodated into the voters’ lists. In 1971 Independent Bangladesh came into existence. That time also many people migrated to Assam and never went back. Now they have become normal citizens of India."