Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has stated that he is prepared to resign if a single new individual enters the state under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
In a recent media interaction, Himanta Biswa Sarma, the Chief Minister of Assam, addressed issues related to the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
He stated that anyone has the right to apply for citizenship under the CAA and that applications can be made online from home, and there is no point in people coming out on the street and protesting.
He also mentioned that he had previously refrained from commenting on the unfortunate loss of five lives during the CAB agitation, but promised that the responsible parties would be identified soon.
Sarma also attempted to dispel misconceptions about the CAA, assuring that no new individuals would enter Assam under the Act, and only those who had been in India before 2014 would be eligible to apply.
Himanta Biswa Sarma also said that apart from people who have applied for NRC no one can enter Assam.
"If a single new person enters Assam, I will resign as the chief minister, " said Himanta Biswa Sarma.
He further speculated that the number of applicants would be minimal, as few would self-identify as foreigners to apply for citizenship.
The Chief Minister warned that if the number of applicants exceeded 20 lakh, he would join the protests. He concluded by promising that all data related to the applications would be made available within 45 to 60 days.
In a significant development ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the central government announced the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) on March 11. The move to notify the rules of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act came before the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).
After the announcement, the Ministry of Home Affairs informed that the applications will be submitted in a completely online mode for which a web portal has been provided.