Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s deafening announcement at a rally at Siliguri in Bengal that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will be implemented once the Covid-19 situation is over has multi-dimensional implications. In recent months Shah has announced many programs to be implemented in the near future. He is also contemplating implementing the Uniform Civil Code. Shah, in earnest, has started preparing the ground and setting the agenda for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections while the opposition parties, particularly the Congress are still busy sorting out their differences and identifying the issues. Shah’s comment comes at a time when the BJP is trying its best to check the BJP downslide in Bengal. A promise of Indian citizenship by the BJP leadership to Matuas, originally from East Pakistan, was one of the primary reasons for their rallying behind the NDA in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Now the Matuas want the government to fulfill their demand. The Matua community is divided on this issue. While some feel that the Mamata government has issued them with the necessary documents which establish their Indian identity. Others worry that those documents are not enough and the Modi government must ensure their rights.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had won 18 seats and led in 33 of the 68 SC-reserved Assembly segments in the state. Of these 33 seats, 26 are Matua-dominated. In the 2021 West Bengal Assembly polls too, of the 26 seats in North 24 Parganas and Nadia districts where Matuas have a strong presence, the BJP won 14. In retaliation to Shah’s assertion state chief minister Mamata Banerjee said she will continue to oppose the CAA and NRC, and reiterated that the issue of citizenship was the BJP’s ploy to fool the masses. The CAA aims to ease citizenship for those who have migrated to India from neighbouring countries fearing religious persecution. In West Bengal, with lakhs of Hindu refugees from East Pakistan or Bangladesh, the issue is of great importance. Though the Act had been passed by Parliament in December 2019, the Modi government refrained from formulating rules following massive protests across the country. Last month Shah sought five more months to formulate the rules. The announcement is also a mechanism to terrorize the Muslims. Since earlier they had taken the lead in protesting the passage of the Act, Shah is working on the design to keep them under his thumb and terrorize them to the maximum so that this time they could not raise their voice of protest against his move.
The CAA had drawn a lot of criticism for specifically leaving out Muslims from its provision of citizenship for refugees. But for BJP this is the best ploy to frighten the Muslims. Incidentally, Shah is planning to bring Uniform Civil Code besides other anti-Muslim policies, in near future, precisely just ahead of the 2024 general election. These policies and programs may not harm the Muslims in a real sense but these would facilitate Modi and Shah to win the Hindu votes by creating an anti-Muslim phobia. Hindus constitute eighty percent of the total population but hardly 30 percent out of the total Hindus vote for the BJP. Though the supporters of Modi claim that he is a charismatic leader and enjoys the total support of the Hindus, the fact remains that Hindus maintain a passive attitude towards him. It is only the supporters and cadres of the RSS and BJP and other Hindu organizations that have been clamoring for him. For ensuring that the BJP again comes to power the drooping image of Modi must get a booster dose and the appearance of the party ought to be galvanized. What made Shah undertake this exercise is not a secret. While the charisma of Modi has been in a decline, the party is witnessing factional fights in all the states, reminiscent of Congress culture. The state leaders are now no more willing to listen to the directives of Modi and Shah. Their whips have lost impact and impression. In this situation, the only way out is to refurbish the image of Modi.
