All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen president Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday said that Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao should take cue a from the Kerala government and put a stay on the implementation of the National Population Register.
Mr. Owaisi was addressing a public meeting in Narayanpet where he spoke at length about the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, National Register of Citizens and described the CAA as a ‘black law’ and ‘anti-poor’.
“The NPR will begin in April 2020. This is why we have met the Chief Minister, and strongly demanded that like the Kerala government, your (TRS) government should also put a stay on it. This is against the poor. Akbaruddin Owaisi sought information under the RTI (Act) about how many people have birth certificates in Hyderabad and Secunderabad. The government said that 28% don’t have it. If this is the case, then imagine what it is in Narayanpet,” Mr. Owaisi said.
The Member of Parliament from Hyderabad said that the CAA goes against the Constitution of India. He maintained that laws in India cannot be based on religion. “This is India. This is not a neighbouring country which does not have a Constitution which we have. No other country has a Constitution like ours,” Mr. Owaisi said.
Earlier in the day, Mr Owaisi responded to news reports which reportedly said that the CAA gives citizenship, and does not take it away. Taking to Twitter, Mr Owaisi said: “If a law confers citizenship on 6 groups but excludes only 1, then it’s a law to deny citizenship. Shah sab may not like the Constitution, but he has to work within its limits. Citizenship on religious basis is antithetical to our Constitution & that’s reason enough to oppose it.”
