NE on the Brink about CAA

The whole country seems to be divided about the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act but for the people of the Northeast, the uprising against the Act is somewhat different and perhaps a little more personal.

- Manjum Mahanta

No matter which side of the argument you are on, it is obvious that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is the most talked about topic across the nation right now. While supporters berate protesters online, and protestors raise their slogans on the streets, all across the country, the Northeast is also fighting the same fight, but for different reasons. We try and understand why the Northeast feels threatened and what people want from the government.

CAA and the Northeast

Citizenship Amendment Bill was first introduced in 2016 by the Lok Sabha by amending the Citizenship Act of 1955. This bill was referred to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to listen to the concerns of the people and a report was later submitted on January 7, 2019. The bill was passed on January 8, 2019, by the Lok Sabha, which lapsed with the dissolution of the 16th Lok Sabha. This same bill was introduced again on 9 December 2019 by the Minister of Home Affairs, Amit Shah, in the 17th Lok Sabha and was later passed on 10 December 2019. The Rajya Sabha also passed the bill on 11th December.

The Act aims to provide Indian citizenship to illegal migrants who entered India on or before 31st December 2014. It was specifically aimed at migrants of six different religions namely Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan. The Act also states that any individual will be considered eligible if he or she has resided in India during the last 12 months or for 11 of the previous 14 years.