Bangladeshi minorities worried over Indian Citizenship Act: BHBCKF

The leaders of Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Kalyan (welfare) Front (BHBCKF) on Thursday expressed concern over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)-2019 of India.

“As the act has been formulated based on religious division, it’s a matter of worry for minorities of both the countries,” BHBCKF convener advocate Gautam Chakrabarti said at a press conference at the Jatiya Press Club.

Both the governments of India and Bangladesh should take such steps so that the security of the Hindu community in this country is not affected, he said.

“If the act is enforced, the communal harmony of this region will be destroyed and there’ll be communal division. It’s also a worry for us when Indian people, irrespective of their religion and cast, have raised their voice against the act,” said Gautam.

Supreme Court advocate and former minister Nitai Roy Chowdhury said many Indians are demonstrating against the Citizenship Amendment Act. “Minorities face repression in both the countries for bad politics,” he said.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government recently approved the CAA bill granting accelerated Indian citizenship to non-Muslim minorities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan and made it a law, resulting in widespread protests against the act across the country.

Besides, the National Citizen’s Register (NRC) has been carried out in the north-eastern state of Assam and that saw 1.9 million people effectively made stateless.

source: UNB