Declare open and clear support to CAA, BJP tells Thackeray

Latching on to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's remark that the CAA is not meant to throw Indian citizens out of the country, the state BJP on Wednesday asked him to declare open and clear support to the controversial act facing opposition from certain quarters.

Thackeray, in an interview to Shiv Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana', said there was no need to fear the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), whose enactment in December triggered nationwide protests, including in Maharashtra.

The Chief Minister, who is also the Sena president, however, asserted his government will not allow the proposed nationwide National Register of Citizens (NRC) to be implemented as it would "impact people of all religions".

"In his interview on Wednesday Thackeray said there are misunderstandings about the CAA, that the act is not aimed at throwing people out of the country.

"He should now declare open and clear position of supporting the Citizenship (Amendment) Act," state BJP spokesperson Madhav Bhandari said in a statement.

Thackeray said the NRC will impact Hindus, too.

"I can confidently say the CAA is not meant to throw Indian citizens out of the country. But, the National Register of Citizens (NRC) is going to impact Hindus as well," the Chief Minister was quoted as saying in the interview.

The Sena's allies in the government, the Congress and the NCP, are opposing the CAA-NRC. The former BJP ally itself backed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (CAB) in the Lok Sabha, but did not take part in voting on it in the Rajya Sabha.

The new citizenship law, passed by Parliament and approved by President in December, has triggered massive protests across the country.

It promises to fast-track Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

CAA's critics say the law is discriminatory and violates the core values of the Constitution.

The proposed NRC seeks to create a record of bonafide Indian citizens in the country and identify illegal residents.