BJP ally Akali Dal makes a U-turn, says include Muslims in Citizenship Amendment Act

Welcoming the passing of the Bill, Shiromani Akali Dal said the bill will enable persecuted minorities to get the benefits of citizenship but the same should be extended to the Muslim community as well 

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The stand of our party is very clear -- Muslims should also be given the benefit as our country and its constitution are secular," an Akali Dal spokesperson said.

Jumping on the bandwagon, BJP's ally in Punjab the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday demanded inclusion of Muslims as beneficiaries of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. The party said that India is a secular country and exclusion of Muslims "is not justified".

Welcoming the passing of the Bill, Shiromani Akali Dal General Secretary and spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema said the bill will enable the persecuted minorities to get the benefits of citizenship but the same should be extended to the Muslim community as well.

"Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians who were subject to persecution and atrocities in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan and were forced to migrate to India decades back were not able to get any facilities due to the lack of the citizenship. The Union government by passing this bill has given a new lease of life to these people but the second aspect is that Muslims have not been included," Cheema said.

"The stand of our party is very clear -- Muslims should also be given the benefit as our country and its constitution are secular. It clearly says that injustice should not be done on the basis of religion. The Union government should also include Muslims," he added.

The Akali Dal has, however, condemned the violence and damage caused to public property by agitators.

Reacting to Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amrinder Singh's remark that he will not allow the passing of the bill in the state assembly, Union Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Monday said that rather than opposing the Citizenship Amendment Bill, Captain Amrinder Singh should tell the people why the coffers of his government were empty.