Kolkata: Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said that the process of granting Indian citizenship to deserving refugees who fled religious persecution in neighbouring countries under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will be completed soon.
Speaking at a programme in Kolkata to mark the 125th birth anniversary of Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, Shah said the CAA was enacted to provide citizenship to persecuted Hindu and other minority refugees who sought shelter in India after facing religious discrimination in neighbouring countries.
He said Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee had strongly argued that the 1950 Liaquat-Nehru Pact had failed to adequately safeguard the interests of Hindus living in Pakistan and East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), making the issue of protecting persecuted minorities a long-standing concern.
Shah also praised the Centre’s efforts to act against corruption and anti-social elements, asserting that the government was committed to fulfilling its promises and that action against those involved in corruption was inevitable.
Addressing the event virtually, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, saying his life and vision laid the foundation for an alternative political ideology in India. The Prime Minister said that by founding the Bharatiya Jana Sangh during a period of Congress dominance, Dr. Mukherjee initiated a new ideological movement that went on to shape the country’s political landscape.
