The implementation of Clause 6 of the Assam Accord will make Assam a forte of indigenous people against the Bangladeshi Muslims, said Assam Finance, Health and PWD Minister Himanta Bishwa Sarma on Saturday.
He added that the first draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) has identified 40 lakh Bangladeshis in Assam.
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Sarma was speaking at the BJP’s ongoing national convention at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi.
“Illegal immigration from Bangladesh has changed the demography of Assam and the people of Assam will remember Prime Minister Narendra Modi for starting the works of National Register of Citizens (NRC) updation which has in its first draft identified 40 lakh Bangladeshis in Assam,” said Sarma.
Also read: Citizenship Bill needed to save Assam from becoming a part of Pakistan: Himanta
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“Influx of people who come from Bangladesh has changed the demography of northeast. Modi ji started the works for NRC and I can happily tell today that 40 lakh Bangladeshis were identified in the first draft of the NRC,” said Sarma, who is also the convener of BJP-led non-Congress alliance North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA).
He said that the steps taken by Modi ji in the form of updating the NRC to ensure the national security of the country would be remembered for hundreds of years by the people of Assam. “If the Clause 6 of the Assam Accord is implemented, Assam will be a forte of indigenous people against the Bangladeshi Muslims,” Sarma added.
Justifying the passing of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 by the Lower House, Sarma said that it was the commitment of the party.
“It was our commitment. When the partition took place, people were not even aware whether they were in Pakistan or in India. The Hindus, Sikhs, Jain, Parsi, Buddhists and Christians of Pakistan who will be given citizenship by this Bill, never wanted the partition but it was imposed upon them by the Congress,” said Sarma.
Quoting the Prime Minister’s recent speech at Silchar, Sarma said that the citizenship to be given to these minorities is not a mercy on them but atonement of the sin committed by the Congress in the past.
“The Prime Minister had also assured that the indigenous Assamese will have reservation of seats in assembly, gram panchayats, nagar palikas etc. The Prime Minister has also brought a Bill to grant ST status to the six oldest communities of Assam, which the Congress has failed to