Assam NRC row: Amit Shah dares opposition parties make their stand clear on illegal migrants 

Amit Shah.

New Delhi: BJP president Amit Shah slammed the opposition parties for their “vote-bank politics” over Assam’s National Register of Citizens (NRC), on Tuesday, and dared them to make their stand clear on “illegal Bangladeshis” in the country.  The opposition is up in arms since the release of the final draft of the state’s NRC, which saw 40 lakh people, who applied for their names to be included, left out of the list.

He said his party is committed to implement the NRC “firmly” and to the “last full stop” as it is about “national security, security of borders and the citizens” of this country.

Addressing a news conference at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi, Shah said, “The illegal migration has been damaging the national security of this country. People were being killed. The NRC is for protecting human rights, the rights of Indians. The country cannot run like this.”

Shah then trained his guns on the opposition and asked them to clarify their stand on illegal migrants.

He said, “The opposition should explain if it has any concern for our national security. How can you protect the country by encouraging and protecting illegal migrants? The NRC is for security and we will implement it firmly. For us, it is top priority. There should not be any doubt.”

 Earlier on Tuesday, Shah’s raised the heckles at the Rajya Sabha by his remarks on the NRC, where he accused the Congress of not having the courage to implement the Assam Accord. The opposition joined hands in sloganeering, which led to the adjournment of the Upper House.

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