32,000 identified across UP for CAA
January 13, 2020 18:35
The Uttar Pradesh government has already started the process of identifying people who need Indian citizenship under the newly formed citizenship law that has triggered unrest across the country. So far, 32,000 people have been identified in 21 districts of the state, the government has said.
But it is not clear what procedure has been followed for this identification. The controversial Citizenship Amendment Act or CAA came into force through a gazette notification three days ago, but rules for implementing it have not yet been framed.
"We are not hurrying through this. We have just about started. Once the act has been notified, we need to get moving, right?" said Shrikant Sharma, Uttar Pradesh minister and government spokesperson.
"This is an ongoing process, will keep on updating the figures. All District Magistrates have been asked to carry out surveys and keep on updating list. We are in process of sharing this list with the Union home ministry too," the minister added.
A chunk of those identified so far appear to be from Pilibhit, a district around 260 km from Lucknow, close to Uttarakhand and India's border with Nepal.
The district 's top government official, Vaibhav Shrivastava, told local journalists on Friday afternoon that 37,000 refugees who came here from Bangladesh, and earlier East Pakistan, have been identified as part of an "initial survey" and the names have been sent to the state government.
"Initial investigations have revealed that these people came to Pilibhit because of persecution in their countries," Shrivastava said.
No explanation has been provided for the discrepancy in figures quoted by the state government.
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