Chennai, Mar 13 (Representative) Reiterating his strong opposition to the ‘divisive’ Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which was notified by the Centre in the government gazette, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK President M.K.Stalin on Tuesday asserted that the ruling DMK will not allow it to be implemented in the State as the BJP government at the Centre betrayed Muslims and Sri Lankan Tamils and sowed seeds of division. He accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of notifying the CAA, with elections looming and tosalvage his sinking ship by cynically resurrecting #CitizenshipAmendmentAct, exploiting religioussentiments for political gain.In a statement here, he said the DMK voted against the Bill in Parliament, also adopted a resolutionin the State Assembly, launched a signature campaign, held rallies and movement. “After the law #SignatureAgainst CAA we held a movement, held a rally; We fought!. After coming topower we passed a resolution in the assembly to withdraw #CAA !”, he added. “When the Union Minister spoke about the implementation, I announced that “we will not allow CAAto be invoked in Tamil Nadu”, he added. “As the announcement was made yesterday #CitizenshipAmendmentRules2024 I will say it again: “The DMK government will definitely not allow #CAA to be implemented in Tamil Nadu!”, he assured,reiterating his strong Opposition to the CAA.
Mr Stalin also accused the AIADMK of ‘shamelessly’ supporting the Bill in Parliament and said the people will teach both the BJP and the AIADMK a befitting lesson (in the coming elections). The Chief Minister said the Union BJP Government’s divisive agenda has weaponised the Citizenship Act, turning it from a beacon of humanity to a tool of discrimination based on religion and race through the enactment of CAA. “By betraying Muslims and Sri Lankan Tamils, they sowed seeds of division”, he said.Despite staunch opposition from democratic forces like DMK, the CAA was passed with the support of BJP’s stooge AIADMK, Mr Stalin said. “Fearing backlash from the people, the BJP kept the act in cold storage”, he said. “After the DMK came to power in 2021, we passed a resolution in TNLA urging the Union Government to repeal the CAA to safeguard the unity of our nation, uphold social harmony,and protect the ideal of secularism enshrined in our constitution”, the Chief Minister said. “Now, as elections loom, Prime Minister Modi seeks to salvage his sinking ship by cynically resurrecting #CitizenshipAmendmentAct, exploiting religious sentiments for political gain”,he added. “However, the people of #INDIA will never forgive the BJP for unleashing this divisive #CitizenshipAmendment Act and their spineless lackeys, the ADMK, who shamelesslysupported it”, he said, adding, “People will teach them a befitting lesson.”