Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya distributed Indian citizenship certificates to seven refugees from Pakistan here on Friday and congratulated them.
"I left Pakistan in 2007. It is an Islamic republic. Temples are destroyed there. Hindu girls and women are being kidnapped and subjected to atrocities. Even the studies there is Islamic," said Mehtab Singh, who fled Pakistan due to religious persecution and came to India in 2007.
"Till 2014, we did not have Aadhaar cards and bank accounts. It was only after the BJP came to power that we got Aadhaar cards and banks accounts were opened," added he.
"I am very happy now that I am an Indian citizen. It is like a Diwali for us," said Singh.
"In Gujarat, there are thousands of refugees, fled due to religious persecution in Pakistan. After the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA), they are getting Indian citizenship. They are thankful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah," said Union Minister Mandaviya.
The amended Citizenship Act grants Indian citizenship to refugees from Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and Parsi communities fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, who entered India on or before December 31, 2014.
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