The BJP’s bold legislative initiatives have been a fraud on or rather subversion of our Constitution, amounting to a bizarre mix of literalism and extreme sophistry. Prime Minster Narendra Modi has hailed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill as “in line with India’s centuries-old ethos of assimilation...and humanitarian values”, but in reality, it is a vicious ploy to aggravate communal divisions and tensions. For the people of Assam, who proudly embrace their past heritage of sacrifice and struggle for India’s freedom, it appears like a gross betrayal of trust. For in the name of freedom, they had not bargained for a loss of their precarious independent identity and culture. The abrupt and massive rise in the number of Bengali speakers, whose identity is secure in West Bengal and Bangladesh, can only mean extinction of our language and culture.
A very interesting, recent revelation by a leader of a left party is that the government has time and again assured the Assamese that no Hindu from Bangladesh will be accepted as a citizen after December...
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