Us or them? Fault lines appear in Northeast over Citizenship Amendment Bill

The Centre's push to legislate the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill has stirred up a hornet's nest in the already troubled Northeast. Radhika Ramaseshan assesses the political divide in the region

As the Centre races against time to pass the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016, in the Rajya Sabha, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is up against a stiff opposition from its allies in the Northeast, with the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) walking out of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in protest. 

The Bill seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955, and make illegal migrants of every religious denomination, except the Muslims from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, eligible for citizenship on easy terms.  

On January 29, the AGP and Conrad Sangma, Meghalaya chief minister who heads the National People’s Party, an NDA constituent, convened