NEW DELHI: Following PM Narendra Modi assertion at a rally in Delhi on Sunday that there has been no discussion on NRC anywhere except Assam and amidst the largescale protests, the BJP is likely to put the matter on hold for now.
BJP sources on Monday claimed that the PM tried to defuse the tense situation in various parts of the country by delinking NRC with the CAA.
They conceded that the party had not anticipated such massive nationwide outburst against the CAA, adding that apprehension among Muslims was the main reason behind the flare-up.
Party leaders said the NRC can be a major poll issue in West Bengal Assembly elections scheduled in 2021. However, further course of action on this will be chalked out in the coming time.
BJP working president J P Nadda held a mega rally in Kolkata on Monday to counter the protests against the amended citizenship Act and NRC.
PM Modi had in his speech accused the opposition of spreading rumours over the CAA-NRC and asserted that these had nothing to do with Indian Muslims.
However, CPI(M) termed his speech a bundle of untruth. Party polit bureau said the BJP’s 2019 poll manifesto promised NRC across the country and Home Minister Amit Shah, during the debate on the CAB in the Lok Sabha on November 9, had said that the NRC will be brought across the country and not a single infiltrator will be spared.