THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, March 24: As the ruling Left party in Kerala intensified its protest against the implementation of the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), the BJP on Sunday attacked chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and said he was making statements with the intention of fostering communal division.
BJP state chief K Surendran, while addressing the media here, said the decision to withdraw cases registered against the anti-CAA protestors was taken to appease a particular community.
He said the chief minister was violating the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by withdrawing the cases and his party will approach the Election Commission of India (ECI).
“The chief minister in the name of CAA is spreading fake narratives and is attempting communal polarisation. The CM is claiming that Muslims are being targeted. What is the basis of this allegation? CAA does not deny citizenship to any one particular community,” Surendran claimed.
The CAA grants citizenship to undocumented migrants of all religions — except Muslims — from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, who arrived in India before December 31, 2014.
He alleged that the Left government announced the withdrawal of cases related to the earlier anti-CAA protests after the ECI announced the dates for the Lok Sabha elections and it was a “blatant violation” of the MCC.
“The protest against the CAA by a particular community was violent, including the destruction of public property. However, the Left government decided to withdraw the cases just after the election announcement. The ECI needs to look into it and take stern action,” Surendran demanded.
Addressing a massive anti-CAA rally organised by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) in the state’s northernmost district Kasaragod yesterday, Vijayan had attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and said the idea of equality enshrined in the Constitution is being shredded through the law.
The chief minister had said that crores of people are worried and concerned about the CAA, which he said targets Muslims in the country.
The Left party is organising massive anti-CAA rallies in five places in the state. The first rally was held in Kozhikode on Friday. The second was held yesterday in Kasaragod.
Three more rallies will be held in Kannur, Malappuram and Kollam. (PTI)
