CAA and NRC will make country a Hindu Rashtra, says Siddaramaiah

Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday said that Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) will make the country a Hindu Rashtra.

Speaking at a press conference, Siddaramaiah said: "While we face several issues such as economy, unemployment, poverty, and many other things, was it necessary to talk about the CAA and NRC. The BJP is giving various reasons to people in an attempt to escape from other important issues."

He further stated that the CAA-NRC law was not only against the constitution, but it was also against humanity, and it also badly hurts other communities.

"There are 19 lakh people in Assam detention centres, out of which 8 lakh people are Muslims. What would happen to others? The Home Minister has given some very confusing statements regarding the issue," he said.

"While farmers are committing suicides, atrocities are happening, the economy is in a desperate condition, the government is talking about something else. We will not at all allow our country to become a Hindu Rashtra on the basis of religion," added the senior Congress leader.

Siddaramaiah stated that 'Sarvejana Sukhino Bhavanthu' (Let the people of the world be happy) was their policy, and further said that their agenda was towards a secular country.

Several protests had erupted across the country after the implementation of CAA, which grants citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis, Buddhists and Christians fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh and who came to India on or before December 31, 2014.