KOZHIKODE: The NDA government’s decision to implement the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will be an opportunity for the Congress to regain the lost confidence of the Muslim community while the CPM will use the issue for a further consolidation of Muslim votes in its favour.
The immediate reactions from the Congress and the CPM leaders prove that CAA will be a major issue in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and both fronts will be vying with each other to project themselves as the champion of the Muslim cause.
The Congress, which had faced flak for a delayed reaction on the Ram Temple consecration issue, was quick to react this time. Congress state president K Sudhakaran declared that CAA will be thrown into the Arabian sea if the INDIA front comes to power at the Centre. Congress candidates, including M K Raghavan, lost no time in announcing their opposition to the development.
Terming the move to implement CAA as an election stunt, Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan said the allies of the INDIA front will launch a nationwide agitation against the “plan to create communal division in society”. He said CAA was a continuation of the trend to mix religion with politics as evident in the Ram Temple issue.
Winning back the trust of Muslims is a must for the Congress, which is precariously poised in many constituencies in Malabar after the party refused to give an additional seat to the IUML. The Congress may intervene in the issue more aggressively in the coming days to assuage the wounded Muslim feelings, as is evident from the reactions of its leaders.
IUML national general secretary P K Kunhalikutty said the party will continue the fight against CAA in the Supreme Court. He told reporters that the Centre had assured the court that CAA will not be implemented.
Meanwhile, the CPM leaders, including Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, have reiterated the party’s resolve to oppose the implementation of CAA. In a statement, Pinarayi repeated the earlier stand that Kerala will not implement the Act.
“The Centre has notified the citizenship amendment rules to create unrest in the country. The notification came just before the Lok Sabha elections. This is to divide the people, incite communal sentiments and undermine the fundamental principles of the Constitution,” he said in a statement.
CPM state secretary M V Govindan said the party will launch an agitation, joining hands with like-minded people.But the allegation that the LDF government had not fulfilled its promise of withdrawing the cases registered against those who took part in the anti-CAA agitations will be raised against the CPM again. The Congress and the IUML had said that the refusal to withdraw the cases showed the lack of sincerity on the part of the CPM in dealing with the issue.
CAA is Centre’s bid to polarise voters: CPM
The Union government move to bring in Citizenship Amendment Act aims at turning India into a religious nation, the CPM state leadership alleged on Monday. That the notification was issued the day the Centre found itself in a spot following the Supreme Court verdict on electoral bonds could not be a coincidence, the party said in a statement. The CPM called for major protests against attempts to enforce CAA. “The state government has already declared that CAA will not be implemented in Kerala. At a time when the poll is round the corner, the BJP is trying to make electoral gains by polarising people,” the CPM said.
‘CAA a fulfilment of an assurance given to partition victims’
he Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is only a ‘fulfilment’ of an ‘assurance’ that was given to people who have been persecuted for more than 75 years in Pakistan following partition, Governor Arif Mohammed Khan has said. Speaking to reporters in Delhi, Khan said the stalwarts of the freedom movement, including Mahatma Gandhi, had assured the “victims of the politics of partition” that they could come to India at any time of their choice and that they would be given full citizenship. Asked about Muslims who want to come to India, Khan said CAA does not mean that others’ applications would not be entertained. Asked about the CAA notification being issued just ahead of the Lok Sabha election, the governor pointed out it was first introduced in 2019. “I can comment only the principle of it (CAA) and not its politics,” he said.
UDF to protest today
The UDF will hold statewide protests on Tuesday against the Centre’s decision to notify the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) rules. Announcing this on Monday, Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan said protests will be held across mandalam committees. “The main aim of the Sangh parivar is to divide people and unleash terror. The Congress and UDF will oppose it,” he said.
