rulers that they were persecuted in
their own country for the reason of
their religious identity. Even after
the grant of Indian citizenship, they
have to live at the mercy of Indian
rulers. They have to eke their lives
in an unwelcome and even hostile
atmosphere as their stay may
impose more burdens on the limited
resources and means of livelihood
in India.
The North Eastern states like
Assam, Manipur and Tripura are
essentially tribal states. They have
a big chunk of people migrated from
the neighboring countries and other
Indian states like West Bengal and
Bihar. Wars (1972) or war – like
situations also brought a big flow
of migrants. There is a strong
apprehension among the people of
these states that their limited
resources, lands and other means
of livelihood are to be parted with
the migrated people and the exodus
of migrants may bring serious
demographic changes leading to
even a loss of national identities.
We have seen massive protest
movement of students and youth in
Assam over the question of putting
a check on the migrations and
protecting their national resources
as well as identities.
In addition, historically, the
nationalities in this region are at
different levels of evolution. The
problems of population flows,
demarcation of boundaries and
other problems are yet to be
resolved among the states. In their
eagerness to integrate North
Eastern states and concerned
about their own class interests, the
Indian ruling classes have erected
more problems than solving in the
way of nationalities. The North
Eastern states enjoy special rights
under the Article 371 of Indian
constitution. Some states have
inner line limits. Some (Naga) are
in dialogue for decades together
with the Indian government on the
January - 2020
question of their political integration
in the Indian Union. The way BJP
government has resorted to the act
of revoking the special status of
Jammu and Kashmir on August 5,
2019 had seriously shaken the trust
and confidence of North Eastern
people in the Indian rulers. The
Indian government’s move first to
implement the NRC in Assam and
the enactment of CAA came as a
big blow for them. The people
apprehend sinister designs in the
moves of Indian rulers to polarize and
divide the people along communal
lines. They see the attempts to
impose BJP brand of Hindutwa and
seriously disturb the economic,
social, cultural and political relations
to suit the interests of Indian ruling
classes.
The BJP has announced that
it will implement the NRC all over
India. Assam people had enough
experience of it. Here, millions of
adivasis and toiling poor who were
sons of the soil or lived in Assam
for generations had to beg for the
citizenship. They had to run from
pillar to post to gather proofs as
required by the authorities to prove
their eligibility for citizenship. At the
end, 19 lakh people were earmarked
as ineligible for citizenship. The
entire exercise is unwarranted and
unjustified. It was tortuous and
humiliating for the people. Here, the
government which is responsible to
identify the foreigners and illegal
migrants has shifted its responsibility
on to the shoulders of Indian people.
The people were asked to prove
their own citizenship and be
prepared to face the punishment for
their failure. This experience is a
pointer to the people in other parts
of India what is in store for them if
the NRC is implemented throughout
India. The people have, therefore,
justifiably rose against the
government’s move in protest and
are rejecting the NRC in one voice.
Faced with massive protest
movement, the PM Modi and Home
Minister Amit Shah are indulging in
a double talk to mislead the people.
They are saying that no one needs
to worry about the CAA because it
is aimed at preventing the entry of
illegal migrants throughout India.
But they don’t reply why the Muslims
are discriminated and Hindu religion
is adopted as the basis for allowing
the migrants and according the
Indian citizenship? They do not reply
why a person can become eligible
simply because he is a Hindu from
Pakistan, Bangla Desh and
Afghanistan, but a person born or
living in India for generations is
asked to go through a tortuous and
humiliating process of proving his
eligibility for Indian citizenship? Now
Modi government is also talking
about National Population Register
with its own additions.
The Indian ruling classes are
creating one issue or other to keep
the people always diverted from the
real issues. They are using these
methods as a mask to push through
their anti-people, anti-national and
anti-democratic policies with no
much opposition from the people.
One of the welcome features of
present protest movement is that
the people are now showing more
awareness about the diversionist
and divisive policy of the ruling
classes. The people are refusing
to see the CAA and NRC as
opposed to Muslims alone. They
rejected the dangerous attempt of
BJP government to communally
polarize and divide India and the
Indian people. The unity forged by
the Indian people cutting across all
faiths in the present protest
movement is a fitting reply to those
who are dead set to take India into
a dirty drain of communalism. It is a
welcome development for the future
struggles of the Indian people. Let
us support and extend all our
solidarity to it. Let us demand
immediate and total withdrawal of
CAA and NRC.
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