Centre followed age-old tradition of offering shelter to persecuted religious minorities: U'hand CM on CAA

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat on Saturday said the Centre has followed an age-old Indian tradition of offering shelter to persecuted religious minorities by passing the amendment to the Citizenship Act and asked youths to do their bit to clear people's doubts about the new law.

In his inaugural speech for the two-day Uttarakhand Young Leaders Conclave here, he said India had given shelter to the Jews, the Parsis and the Tibetans.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has repeatedly made it clear that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is not meant to strip any community members of their citizenship. It only aims to grant citizenship to persecuted religious minorities which has taken shelter in the country, Rawat said.

"A conspiracy to spread misinformation about CAA is underway across the country. Educated young people like you should come forward to educate people and dispel their misapprehension about it," the chief minister said.

"By passing the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, the Central government has only followed an age-old Indian tradition of offering shelter to persecuted religious minorities," he added.

The Uttarakhand Young Leaders Conclave was being held on the occasion of the 157th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda which falls tomorrow, the chief minister said.

Referring to Swami Vivekananda's speech at World's Parliament of Religions held in Chicago in 1893, where he had begun his address with "sisters and brothers of America", Rawat said, "This showed Swami Vivekananda's inclusive philosophy which also forms the core of the Indian ethos."