Rival parties on same page over NRC

  • | Monday | 27th August, 2018

BJP in the state Chief minister Biplab Deb had said there is no demand for an NRC in the state since "everyone is a legal citizen". Like other states, we need to take up the matter too," Mevak Kumar Jamatia, general secretary of IPFT and tribal welfare minister, had said earlier.Last week, the state saw two separate protests by the tribal parties, seeking NRC. "Our party has long been fighting to protect the life, culture, tradition and linguistic identity of the indigenous people of Tripura. While both IPFT and INPT organized public rallies on Thursday, INPT held another demonstration on Saturday. AGARTALA: The movement seeking the creation of a National Register of Citizens ( NRC ), on the lines of the one in Assam, is gaining momentum in Tripura The demand for NRC has turned out to be an issue that has brought the tribal opposition and ruling parties - INPT and the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) - on the same page.

AGARTALA: The movement seeking the creation of a National Register of Citizens ( NRC ), on the lines of the one in Assam, is gaining momentum in Tripura The demand for NRC has turned out to be an issue that has brought the tribal opposition and ruling parties - INPT and the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) - on the same page."Our party has long been fighting to protect the life, culture, tradition and linguistic identity of the indigenous people of Tripura. There has been a constant threat to the indigenous way of life because of influx from Bangladesh - first, after the Partition and, then, since 1971 when Bangladesh was created," INPT general secretary Jagadish Debbarma said. On Tuesday, a delegation of the tribal-based opposition Indigenous Nationalist Party of Twipra (INPT) will meet the Prime Minister, the home minister and the Registrar General of India to place their demand for an NRC in the state."The under-developed Autonomous District Council areas and the poor socio-economic status of the state's indigenous people is because of the negligence of successive governments at the Centre," Debbarma said, adding that INPT also wants all vacant ST-reserved posts to be filled through a special recruitment drive, the ADC to be empowered, introduction of ILP in ADC areas and inclusion of Kokborok language in the Eighth Schedule.While BJP, IPFT's ally in the ruling coalition, has said the state does not need an NRC, IPFT has been quote vocal in its demand for a citizen register that helps identify illegal migrants. "NRC is a burning issue. Like other states, we need to take up the matter too," Mevak Kumar Jamatia, general secretary of IPFT and tribal welfare minister, had said earlier.Last week, the state saw two separate protests by the tribal parties, seeking NRC. While both IPFT and INPT organized public rallies on Thursday, INPT held another demonstration on Saturday. Both parties have sought 1951 as the cut-off date for identifying legal citizens.In addition, another tribal-based party National Conference of Tripura has raised the same demand.As an extension of the citizen identification drive, the parties have also demanded that the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016 be withdrawn. The proposed amendment seeks to grant citizenship to migrants belonging to religious minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan , which, those opposing it say, would nullify the entire NRC exercise.IPFT's stand on both issues is in contrast to that of its ally. BJP in the state Chief minister Biplab Deb had said there is no demand for an NRC in the state since "everyone is a legal citizen". The bill, too, has been introduced by BJP at the Centre.

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