Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath said Wednesday his party Congress also wanted to implement the National Population Register (NPR), but without the National Register of Citizens (NRC) as he vowed not to implement the ‘anti-constitutional’ Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) in the state.
Nath, who led an anti-CAA protest march here, raised questions over the Modi government’s ‘intentions’ behind bringing the NPR together with the NRC.
Nath alleged the Centre was opening the door for the ‘misuse’ of the CAA and the NRC. He stated that what is ‘not written’ in the controversial legislation holds more importance that what is written.
“Wo jo NPR le aaye, wo toh hum bhi chahte the, par uske sath koi NRC nahi juda tha. Jo ye jodkar la rahe hai ye inki niyat sabit karti hai! (We (Congress) also wanted the NPR that they have brought, but there was no NRC associated with it. They are bringing it together, which has made their intentions clear),” Nath told reporters here after participating in the march.
Questioning the Centre’s intentions, Nath said Union Home Minister Amit Shah has already told Parliament that they will implement the NRC across the country.
“During my 40 years in Parliament, I have never seen an anti-constitutional law like the CAA and NRC. It is not a question of what is written (in the law), but what is not (written). It is not a question of its use, but of misuse. They are opening the door of misuse,” said the former Lok Sabha MP from Chhindwara.
Nath further said the Centre was trying to divert the attention of people from several grave issues like economic slowdown, unemployment, farm distress and challenges in bringing in investments.
At the outset of the protest march, Nath told the gathering he would fight against the CAA till the end as it was ‘against the basic structure of the country’.
“The identity of India is through its Constitution, which connects various cultures and ensures unity of the country,” pointed out Nath.
PTI
