State BJP leaders believe that the controversy over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) will help the party in the final phase of the election.

Senior Jharkhand BJP leaders claimed the CAA was not aimed at Muslims, but none of the leaders replied to repeated questions on how the Muslims’ fears were unfounded if any non-Muslim excluded in the proposed all-India NRC is shielded by the amended citizenship law.

BJP spokesperson Pratul Nath Shahdeo claimed there are checks and balances in the amended citizenship act to stop misuse of the law. “We salute those Muslims who decided to stay in India during Partition. Bangladeshi Muslims who have settled in large numbers in Pakaur, Sahebganj and Dumka districts have eaten up facilities meant for Indian Muslims. Using them as vote bank some political parties ensured voter ID cards for them,” Shahdeo said.

However, a local journalist pointed out that Santhal Paragana has a sizeable Muslim population, many of whom are poor and may not have sufficient documents to prove citizenship. “Also, a large section of the tribal population still has faith in Guruji (JMM patriarch Shibu Soren),” the journalist said.

A Sahebganj-based college professor said: “The BJP leaders may be speaking about national issues but people here are more concerned about local issues.”