BJP national chief Amit Shah on Wednesday promised to grant citizenship to Matuas and iterated the party’s vow to get the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill passed in Parliament and undertake the National Register of Citizens exercise across India.
He gave the promise at an election a rally in Nadia’s Kalyani that falls under Bongaon Lok Sabha seat, dominated by the Matua community.
“Only after implementing the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, the BJP government will implement the NRC across the country, including Bengal. Infiltrators will be flushed out of Bengal and the entire country. Vote bank is not our priority, unlike Mamata Banerjee, whose vote bank is the infiltrators. She is opposing the NRC because of that,” Shah said.
The BJP chief promised that the central government would take up the citizenship issue of the Matuas.
“This is a long pending issue, which the Matua community members have been demanding. It will be fulfilled with honour by Narendra Modiji. You will be able to stay in India with pride. We will provide citizenship to all eligible refugees through the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. After that, we will introduce the NRC to flush out the infiltrators from Kashmir to Kanyakumari,” Shah said.
The Matua community comprises the backward Namasudras who crossed over from Bangladesh after Partition,
Shah claimed that the Lok Sabha polls had become more significant in Bengal than other parts of the country as the state would play a decisive role in protecting democracy.
“This election bears significance across the country for development of the poor, for ensuring security of the country, for development of infrastructure, for growth of economy and to tell the world about the success story of our country.
But this election is more significant in Bengal. This will decide whether democracy in Bengal will survive or not. The way Mamata Banerjee has allowed miscreants to unleash terror during (last year’s) panchayat polls, the way she has throttled democracy, this election will help to end the rule of violence.”
