There is one simple explanation
as to why we do not need the CAB – we can no longer bear the burden of illegal
migrants, whether he is a Hindu or a Muslim or any other religious community.
A counter-argument can be that we
only have to take the burden of all those non-Muslim illegal migrants who came
to India till 31 December 2014. But, how will the authorities be able to
ascertain when a person had entered India? That person had entered India illegally,
and hence there is no record of his date of entry. So, how will his/her date of
entry be verified? Anyone can claim that they have entered India before 31
December 2014. No way of checking this claim. And, thus, someone entering India
illegally today may also become an Indian citizen in due course of time, and,
then demand and take a share of our resources.
Similarly, how will one know
whether a person has been religiously persecuted? A Hindu from Bangladesh may
have entered India illegally to look for better economic opportunities; but, he
may say that he had faced religious persecution in that country. Where is the
proof of that? Who will verify the validity of his claim?
(I sent an email to the Prime
Minister’s Office asking these questions. Never got a reply. Guess, they don’t
have an answer!)
And, when we talk about religious
persecution, why is the Bill talking about only the non-Muslim communities
coming from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan?
If we want to be generous to religiously-persecuted
people, why is there no mention about the Rohingyas of Myanmar? In Pakistan,
the Shias face religious persecution. Ahmadiyyas who align themselves with the
Sunni school also face persecution. What about them?
Or, are we becoming a nation, who
only protects the Hindus?
I don’t think that our founding
fathers wanted our Country to be only an abode of the Hindus.
India is a great nation, because this
is the motherland of numerous religious communities, who had lived together for
generations.
Our Constitution describes us of
being a ‘Secular’ Nation.
The Constitution also states that
there shall be no discrimination against any citizen on grounds of religion, race,
caste, sex, or place of birth.
And, now those very tenets of the
Constitution are being violated by the CAB.
The elected leaders of our State
have turned out to be spineless – totally bowing down to the pressure being
given the Centre. They are putting their personal gains above those of the
people and the state. They will realize one day that History has never been
kind to such people.
The onus in now on the people to
protest and make the government understand that an illegal migrant is an
illegal migrant irrespective of religion. Whether he/she is a Muslim or a
Hindu, it does not matter. If they have entered India without valid documents,
they need to be deported back.
The CAB is a totally regressive,
unconstitutional act and its place is only in the dustbin.
And, I am sure majority of
Indians will agree with it.
