There’s time to make Prime Minister cancel Citizenship (Amendment) Bill: All Assam Students' Union

There’s time to make Prime Minister cancel Citizenship (Amendment) Bill: All Assam Students' Union

Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI: The AASU (All Assam Students’ Union) has appealed to Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal to make Prime Minister Narendra Modi withdraw the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016.

Such an appeal from the students’ union came close on the heels of Sonowal making an appeal to AASU leaders to cooperate with the Central Government on the formation of the high-power committee for implementation of Clause 6 of the Assam Accord. The Chief Minister made such an appeal at a Bhogali Bihu programme in Nagaon on Tuesday. He also spoke in favour of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill at the function.

Talking to The Sentinel on the Chief Minister’s appeal, adviser-in-chief of the students’ body Samujjal Bhattacharjya said on Wednesday, “Still there’s time for making the Prime Minister cancel the Citizenship the (Amendment) Bill. We expect such a move from Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and his Cabinet. Implementing Clause 6 of the Assam Accord by killing its Clause 5 is meaningless. Implement Clause 6 of the Accord after deporting all Bangladeshis who entered the State after 1971. There was a committee on Clause 6 of the Accord. Start implementation of Clause 6 of the Accord from where the previous committee left the task.”

Bhattacharjya said: “Sonowal did assume the AASU mantle. It’s high time he translated into action all slogans which he had shouted on the streets as AASU president. Before the 2016 Assembly election in the State he said that the interests of the indigenous people of Assam would be protected.

The people of the State voted him to power for such an assurance. When New Delhi imposed the anti-Assam Citizenship Bill, the people of the State expected a bold step against the Bill from Sonowal. Now the people of the State are disgruntled by not seeing any such step from him. The problem of foreigners in Assam has to be solved within the parameters of the Assam Accord. The BJP’s vision document published before the 2016 Assembly election in Assam had a promise for implementing the Assam Accord to the letter. There was no mention of Bangladeshi Hindus in the document. A number of governments in the Northeast took resolutions against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. The people of Assam also want such a resolution from the Assam Government as well.”

Clause 5 of the Assam Accord seeks to ‘detect and deport all foreigners entering Assam after the midnight of March 24, 1971’.

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