Centre should have wide consultation with Opposition over NPR: BSP

Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) on Wednesday expressed deep concerns over central government's decision to implement National Population Register (NPR) saying, the Centre needs to have wide consultation with the Opposition and evolved consensus should be made on such an issue.

Speaking to ANI, BSP national spokesperson Sudhindra Bhadoria said, " The Prime Minister time and again has been making statements that whatever decisions he takes over the issues pertaining to national interests, he takes opposition in confidence. But on this very vital issue, he should have held wide consultation with the opposition. Before moving forward with the NPR, an evolved consensus should have been made."

"Today the country is reeling in this cold where people are freezing to death. The citizens are also dying because of certain policies that are creating a divisive agenda in this country. I think it is the duty of the government in such a charged atmosphere to have consul opposition parties," he asserted.

The Bahujan Samaj Party leader also reacted on the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and slammed Union Home Minister Amit Shah for being "wishy-washy" about its implementation.

"Home Minister Amit Shah had said that 'No talk on Nationwide NRC right now' and but on many occasions had gone on record saying that at the moment we are bringing CAB and then we will bring NRC. So I think this is a double talk which these leaders are doing. They do not have clarity. This is a divisive policy by which they are pursuing and creating divisiveness in this country. They should pursue an economic agenda because there is unemployment, there is a bowl of price rice and there is also high inflation which the country is reeling from. Also, the GDP figures have gone down drastically," he said.

The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the expenditure of Rs 8,754.23 crore for the Census of India 2021 and Rs 3,941.35 crore for NPR.

The NPR is a register of the usual residents of the country. It contains information collected at the local (village/sub-town), subdistrict, district, state and national level under provisions of the Citizenship Act, 1955 and the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.