Asaduddin Owaisi's angry reaction to Centre's CAA move: ‘Based on Godse’

New Delhi: AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday slammed the Central government for implementing the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, claiming the law is based on Mahatma Gandhi's murderer Nathuram Godse's thought. Owaisi claimed that the CAA law will reduce Muslims to second-class citizens.

"You understand the chronology -- first election season will arrive then CAA rules will come. Our objections to CAA remain the same. CAA is divisive & based on Godse’s thought that wanted to reduce Muslims to second-class citizens," he wrote on X, in an angry reaction to the government's CAA move, weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

The law, passed in 2019, makes it easier for Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Christian and Parsi refugees from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, to get Indian citizenship. The law will be applicable on those who arrived in India on or before 31 December, 2014.

Also read: Central government implements Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)

The passage of the law had prompted nationwide protests in the national capital in 2019. The protestors claimed the law discriminated against the Muslim community.

Also read: CAA rules notified: Eligibility, procedure, language requirement for citizenship explained

Over the years, union home minister Amit Shah has clarified on several occasions that the law is not aimed at snatching away any person's citizenship.

Asaduddin Owaisi today said citizenship should not be based on religion or nationality.

Also read: CAA backlash: Congress, Mamata Banerjee slam Modi government, question timing

"Give asylum to anyone who is persecuted but citizenship must not be based on religion or nationality. The government should explain why it kept these rules pending for five years and why it’s implementing it now. Along with NPR-NRC, CAA is meant to only target Muslims, it serves no other purpose. Indians who came out on the streets to oppose CAA NPR NRC will have no choice but to oppose it again," Owaisi wrote on X today.

Also read: Explained: What is the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)?

Meanwhile, the chairperson of the Islamic Centre of India, Maulana Khalid Rasheed Farangi Mahali appealed to the masses to stay calm.

"We want to appeal to everyone to stay calm and not panic. Our legal team will look into this, and further decisions will be taken," he told PTI.