New Delhi: Leader of Congress party in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Sunday called Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah "migrants" in reference to the Bharatiya Janta Party's push towards a country-wide implementation of National Register of Citizens and the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill.
Hitting out at PM Modi and Shah, the Congress leader said that both the leaders are migrants as they have their homes in Gujarat but they are now living in Delhi.
"Narendra Modi and Amit Shah are migrants themselves," said Chowdhury.
Critiquing the entire NRC exercise and the Citizenship Bill, the Congress leader added, "India is for everyone- for Hindus, Muslims, and for everyone else. They are creating the fear that they will throw out Muslims. They do not have the capability to do that. But what they want to show is that Hindus will be allowed to stay, while Muslims will be sent away."
Chowdhury's statement on Amit Shah and PM Narendra Modi came in view of the home minister's statement in Rajya Sabha that the NRC will be implemented nationwide.
Addressing the Rajya Sabha a few days ago, Amit Shah said the NRC would be implemented in the whole country while asserting that no person from any religion needs to be afraid of it.
"The NRC exercise is monitored by the Supreme Court. No religion has been targeted or isolated during the NRC exercise," Amit Shah said responding to a query of Congress leader Syed Nasir Hussain.
The Citizenship (Amendment)Bill, 2016, which was passed in the Lok Sabha on January 8 this year, aims at granting citizenship to non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, who came to India before December 31, 2014.
Further attacking the Bill, Chowdhary said that Home Minister Shah should learn about the number of migrants from India, who were working and living in the rest of the world and their contribution to the Indian economy.
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"In the entire world, the maximum number of migrants are from India. All the Indians living and working abroad send crores of rupees back to India," Chowdhary said.
He also warned Shah of the consequences of passing the Bill.
"Amit Shah has the numbers needed to pass the Bill, but what will happen after that is another matter," said the Congress leader.
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Continuing his tirade against the Bill, Chowdhary added, "thanks to the Citizenship Amendment Bill, the country is reeling under an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty."
Citing the example of Bengal, Choudhary said that the more the BJP pushes for the Citizenship Amendment Bill, the more it will lose face across the country.
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"This Bill promotes religious discrimination in the country, " said the Lok Sabha MP.
