Party manifesto can't override Constitution: Anand Sharma
December 11, 2019  16:43
image
Attacking the BJP over the Citizenship Amendment Bill in the Rajya Sabha, Congress leader Anand Sharma on Wednesday said the manifesto of any political party cannot be above the Constitution of the country. Starting the debate in the Upper House of Parliament, the deputy leader of opposition termed the controversial bill "divisive, discriminatory" and against the fundamentals of the Indian Constitution.


While replying to Union Home Minister Amit Shah who tabled the bill in the House, Sharma said that though it was part of BJP's 2019 manifesto, it cannot override the principles of the Indian Constitution. 


"Every political party has a right to have its own manifesto. But the manifesto of any political party cannot be above the Constitution of this country," he said. Sharma said there are provisions in the Constitution in Article 6 and many people have applied for citizenship. 


Taking a dig at the home minister, the Congress leader said, "You are saying this is a historic bill, but how it will be evaluated in history, this you get to know later." Sharma also highlighted the haste with which the government was bringing in the bill.


"Jaldbaazi kyun (Why are you in a hurry). You should have referred it to a standing committee of Parliament and introduced in the next session," he said. "We are opposing it and the reason for that is not political, but constitutional and moral. I am convinced that the bill which you have brought is an assault on the foundational values of our Constitution," he said, adding that "it hurts the soul of Republic of India" and fails the "morality" test. 


Terming it "divisive and discriminatory", Sharma said the citizenship amendment bill was against the preamble of the Constitution which talks about "liberty, equality and secularism". Sharma said that for centuries India had granted asylum to displaced people. 


It granted asylum even after Independence to the people from countries like Sri Lanka, Uganda, but religion was never a criteria for it, he said. "The reason is political and you know that there is already a provision to grant citizenship to those who are suffering," he said. 


Sharma also opposed the allegation in the Lower House that his party was responsible for the division of the country in 1947. He said it was the Hindu Mahasabha led by Vinayak Savarkar who first talked about the two-nation theory and division of India and a year later Muslim League also adopted it. -- PTI
« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES