Won’t allow CAA in state: Capt

Ludhiana

Amid ongoing protests over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in various parts of the country, Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh today said his government will not implement the CAA in Punjab and that the Congress will continue to fight it tooth and nail.

Lashing out at the BJP for trying to change the Constitution’s preamble, Capt Amarinder called upon citizens to unite against their “divisive and dangerous” attempts to destroy the nation’s secular fabric with the “draconian” Act.

VOICE OF NATION BEING IGNORED

While the entire world is expressing concern over the ramifications of the legislation, those sitting in Delhi continue to be adamant, refusing to pay heed to the voice of the nation —Capt Amarinder Singh, Chief Minister

He was addressing a protest rally, “Samvidhan Bachao, Desh Bachao”, attended by senior Congress leaders, including Cabinet ministers, MLAs and MPs, near the statue of Mahatma Gandhi here.

Reading out the preamble, Capt Amarinder said it was the very basis of India’s foundation, which nobody could disturb. While Articles of the Constitution were amended from time to time, not just in India but across the world, no one could tolerate tinkering with its basic structure, he said, adding even the United Nations had termed the CAA discriminatory.

Pointing out that protests against the Act were going on in 16 states, including Punjab, the Chief Minister said the BJP could not get away with its nefarious designs.

Asserting that even MIT students in the US had passed a resolution against the CAA, the CM observed while the entire world was expressing concern over the ramifications of the legislation, “those sitting in Delhi continue to be adamant, refusing to pay heed to the voice of the nation”.

Referring to alleged manhandling of AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi in Uttar Pradesh, Capt Amarinder said the police could not have indulged in such acts without CM Yogi Adityanath’s knowledge. “Aren’t you ashamed of such actions?” he asked Yogi.

Senior party leader and Finance Minister Manpreet Badal recalled Mahatma Gandhi’s eviction from a train in South Africa, prompting him to warn the White officials that he would throw them out of his country one day. Likening the current situation with the incident, Manpreet said if Modi tried to send Indians out of the country, the Congress would turn him (Modi) out of India.

PPCC president Sunil Jakhar lambasted the “kale angrez sitting in Delhi” (BJP-led Central Government) for trying to implement the agenda which the pre-Independence “goras” (Whites) had failed to execute.

He took a dig at the BJP leadership’s “tukde tukde gang” remarks, saying the NDA itself was a “tukde tukde” government, which was out to divide the country.

The protest was attended by senior party leaders, including AICC secretary in-charge of Punjab Asha Kumari, MP Preneet Kaur and minister Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa.