CAA in line with promise given by India’s founding fathers: Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan
Bulandshahr (Uttar Pradesh) [India], March 13 (ANI): Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan said on Wednesday that the Citizenship Amendment Act was in line with the promise given by India’s founding fathers to the minorities in Pakistan during the time of India’s partition. "Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Maulana Azad and Dr. Manmohan Singh--everyone promised citizenship to persecuted minorities in Pakistan and Bangladesh. This promise was first made in 1947," Khan told reporters here. He said that he did not want to comment on the political controversy surrounding the CAA. Khan said that there were several media reports about the forced conversion and forced marriage inflicted on minority communities in Pakistan. In Kerala, both the ruling Left Democratic Front and the main opposition United Democratic Front are up in arms against the Union government after it notified the CAA rules that enable its implementation. Both the alliance conducted protest marches against the law. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that his government will not implement CAA in the state. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday joined his INDIA bloc partners to take on the centre over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Kejriwal termed the government decision as "very dangerous" and said that the government money that should be spent on the development of family and country will now be spent on allowing Pakistanis to settle in India.The Delhi CM also questioned the government claiming that the influx of refugees could lead to a huge financial burden. "There are approximately three crore minorities in these three countries. As soon as our doors open, huge crowds from these countries will come here. Even if 1.5 crore people come here, who will employ them? Where will they be settled? Why is BJP doing this?" CM Kejriwal said.Arvind Kejriwal urged the people to vote against the BJP if they do not agree to take back the law. On March 11, the Union Home Ministry notified the rules of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), days ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule.The CAA rules, introduced by the Narendra Modi government and passed by Parliament in 2019, aim to confer Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants--including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians--who migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014. (ANI)