Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi has described the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill as an attack on the Constitution.
Gandhi said anyone who supports the Bill is attempting to destroy the foundation of India.
Gandhi’s comments came a day after the Lok Sabha passed the contentious bill on Tuesday night.
“The CAB is an attack on the Indian constitution. Anyone who supports it is attacking and attempting to destroy the foundation of our nation,” Rahul said in a tweet.
The Bill was tabled for discussion in the Lok Sabha on Monday by Union home minister Amit Shah.
It was passed with 311 in its favour and 80 against it following a marathon over eight hour long debate continued till 12.06 a.m. on Tuesday which began at about 4 p.m. on Monday in the lower House.
The Bill would now be moved in the Rajya Sabha to cross its final hurdle before becoming a law to grant citizenship to Indian nationality to Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Parsis, Jains and Buddhists fleeing persecution in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.
As treasury benches called it a historical Bill while the opposition dubbed the move to “kill secularism and Constitution of India”, “another attempt of partion” in the country in the name of religion and “violation of Article 14 of the Constitution”.
Major opposition parties, including Congress, Trinamool Congress, Revolutionary Socialist Party, Dravida Munnetra Kazhgam (DMK), All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM), Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), AIUDF, BSP, Samajwadi Party, Aam Aadmi Party and YSR Congress opposed the Bill citing various articles of the Constitution.
