CAA-NRC: Prakash Ambedkar demands Amit Shah’s resignation

Bahujan Vanchit Aghadi President (Dr.) Prakash Ambedkar demanded the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah for creating mass unrest by bringing the Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register for Citizens, here on Thursday.

Addressing a massive rally and procession to oppose the CAA-NRC, he alleged that the CAA-NRC is a “conspiracy by the Bharatiya Janata Party and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh” to divide the people of the country, divert attention from the economic crises confronting the country, and hence must be resisted with full force.

“Despite their claims, the CAA-NRC are definitely 100 percent anti-Muslims, but it will also go against 40 percent of the Hindus in the country and hence must be fought by all communities,” Ambedkar thundered.

He demanded whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi – after seeing all these countrywide protests against the ‘anti-people’ laws – will seek Shah’s resignation or sack him from the home ministry.

Accusing the government of spreading ‘misinformation’ on the detention camps, Ambedkar claimed that these detention camps have been working in places like Assam, but nobody knows how many people are kept there, and even in Navi Mumbai.

“During the British rule, people who were condemned to detention camps never returned, many died there… In case any such detention camps come up in Maharashtra, we will go and demolish them,” he roared amidst an applause.

Elaborating on the impact of the CAA-NRC, Ambedkar – who is the grandson of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, the Architect of Indian Constitution – warned that these laws would harm more Hindus than the Muslims, but the implications of which the majority community has not yet fully understood.

He reiterated that there are nomadic tribes who make up 12-16 percent of the population, 9 percent tribals, besides, ‘alutedars’ and ‘balutedars’ (small rural migrant labour communities), who have no documents of any kind.

“The government wants people to produce the documents of their fathers and forefathers… From where shall we get these? What about these (above) communities? If they are unable to produce the papers, they will be liable for action under the NRC,” Ambedkar declared.

The VBA procession-cum-rally outside Dadar saw many thousands waving the Indian Tricolour, carrying pictures of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Mahatma Gandhiji, the Constitution, poster proclaiming ‘Reject CAA – Boycott NRC’, banners with anti-CAA-NRC slogans, and raising full-throated cries to strike down the two laws.

A huge procession was held in Sindhudurg, coastal south-Konkan region, to protest against the CAA-NRC and the participants demanding scrapping of the laws.

Later this evening, another procession will be held in south Mumbai to protest and condemn incidents of violence against journalists covering the anti-CAA-NRC agitations across the country.-IANS news