AGP delegation meets Bihar CM; seeks JD(U) support against Citizenship (Amendment) Bill

An eight-member delegation of the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) Saturday met Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar here and sought the JD(U)'s support against the passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, in Parliament.

The delegation was led by AGP president and Assam Agriculture Minister Atul Bora and former Assam chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta. The party is an ally of the BJP in the Assam government.

The delegation submitted a memorandum to Nitish Kumar, who is also the JD(U)'s national president, urging him to extend his party's support and cooperation, both inside and outside Parliament, to prevent the passage of the Bill.

The Bill is likely to be tabled in the Winter Session of Parliament.

"It is learnt that the Janata Dal (United) under your leadership is raising objection against the passage of the Bill...

"We urge you to do the needful so that the Bill can not get through Parliament. We solicit your kind cooperation both inside and outside Parliament," Bora said in the memorandum.

AGP leaders Keshab Mahanta, Phanibhushan Choudhary, Birendra Prasad Vaishya, Brindavan Goswami, Ramendra Narayan Kalita and Kamla Kant Kalita were also part of the delegation.

JD(U) national general secretary K C Tyagi and party MLC Sanjay Kumar Singh were also present at the meeting that took place at Nitish Kumar's official residence at 1 Aney Marg.

The JD(U), after disintegration of the grand alliance in Bihar in July 2017, joined hands with the BJP to form a NDA government in the state.

The memorandum said the AGP expects JD(U) MPs to protest against the Bill.

In a resolution passed at its national executive meeting in New Delhi on July 8, the JD(U) had opposed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, terming it a clear threat to the indigenous languages and the culture of Assam.

The JD(U) in its resolution had asked the Centre to work towards mitigating the people's concerns about the Bill.

Brought by the government in Parliament in 2016, the Bill seeks to make Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan eligible for Indian citizenship after a stay of six years.

"The provisions of the Bill is quite obnoxious and detrimental to the greater interest of the people not only of Assam but also of India," the AGP memorandum said