GUWAHATI: The two-day state executive meeting of BJP , with a focus on the Centre's Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016, began at Nalbari on Friday. The committee will also discuss the publication of the final draft of the National Register of Citizens ( NRC ) on June 30 and the possible implications thereafter."The executive committee will move a political resolution on NRC and the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill on Saturday after the issues are discussed by all the members," BJP leader and commerce minister Chandramohan Patowary said.However, sources said BJP will not explicitly express its stance on the bill until the final NRC draft is published. "The party feels that the state government should wait for the publication of the NRC and asses the situation thereafter. We do not know how many names of illegal citizens (both Hindu and Muslim) will be left out from the NRC," the source said.It is expected that the party will toe the line taken by chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal , who has assured that his government will stand by the people and will not take a position that goes against the interest of the state. Sonowal has also recently said that if he cannot work for the people, there is no reason for him to continue as the chief minister.Since the visit of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the bill on May 7, the state has witnessed mass protests against the proposed legislation. The All Assam Students' Union (Aasu), which had spearheaded the anti-foreigners movement from 1979 to 1985, is leading the current protests. Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, during his meeting with Aasu on Thursday, has also expressed his opposition to the proposed legislation and promised to convince Prime Minister Narendra Modi to scrap the bill. Kumar's JD (U) is part of the NDA at the Centre.About 3.5 lakh state government employees, pro-talks Ulfa faction, artists and student organizations have joined in the protest. The protesters fear that granting of citizenship to persecuted religious minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan will be a threat to the Assamese identity, language and culture of the state.Asom Gana Parishad, BJP's ally in the state government, has publicly opposed the move and threatened to withdraw support if the bill is passed by parliament. Though BJP has the numbers to stay in the government even if AGP pulls out, the proposition comes as a serious threat ahead of the Lok Sabha polls next year.

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