Raise voice against Citizenship (Amendment) Bill: PRISM

Aizawl: Aizawl-based anti-corruption watchdog, People's Right to Information and Development Society of Mizoram (PRISM), on Saturday urged the people to raise their voices and stage protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016.

The Bill seeks to make illegal migrants of certain minority communities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan eligible for the Indian citizenship.
In a press statement, the PRISM said the executive committee meeting of the body yesterday decided to involve all political parties and NGOs of the state in protesting against the proposed legislation.

"The Bill, if passed, would cause serious demographic crisis in India. It will affect those regions in the northeast which share international border with Bangladesh, Nepal and Myanmar," the statement said.

The statement further said that the proposed legislation seeks to grant citizenship to any Hindu, Parsi, Jain, Buddhist and Christian who entered India and stayed in the country for six years.

PRISM expressed apprehension that illegal immigrants from Bangladesh in western parts of Mizoram would be granted citizenship if the proposed bill becomes a law.