Taking a jibe at the BJP-led central government over the amended Citizenship Act, West Bengal Chief Minister- Mamata Banerjee on December 13 said she would not allow its implementation in the state “under any circumstances”.
At a press conference in Digha, Banerjee said that TMC will never implement the NRC and Citizenship Act in the state. She accused the saffron party of forcing to implement Citizenship Act on non-BJP states.
“We will never allow NRC exercise and Citizenship Act in Bengal. We will not implement the amended Act, even though it has been passed in Parliament. The BJP can’t just bulldoze the states to implement it,” Banerjee said.
Assuring the people in the state, she said that not a single person in the state will have to leave the country.
District organisations of Trinamool will organise protests on the issue of #CitizenshipAmendmentBill on December 2019 across the State
Another rally will be held from Jadavpur till Gandhi statue on Mayo Road on December 17
— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) December 13, 2019
She said, “The Citizenship Act will divide India.” Referring to Japan’s Prime Minister – Shinzo Abe’s visit to Assam, which has been delayed said that it is a blot on the country’s reputation.
To protest against the act, Mamata Banerjee has announced a series of protest program across the state. She even canceled her visit to Delhi to attend the 150 birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
She has been a trenchant critic of the bill from the day it was brought in Lok Sabha. She has also found support from her counterparts in Kerala and Punjab who have termed it “unconstitutional”.
“Don’t be scared of this bill. We are with you, and as long as we are here, nobody can impose anything on you,” she told a gathering in Kharagpur when Union Home Minister Amit Shah was introducing the bill in the Lok Sabha.
Once the bill was passed from the Rajya Sabha, massive protests erupted in Northeastern states.
Ten CRPF companies have been deployed in Assam. Two people have been reported dead after a clash between CRPF personnel and protestors in Guwahati. Internet services were suspended in Meghalaya, Assam, and Tripura.
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