CAA dangerous, law and order will collapse; thefts, robberies will increase: Delhi CM Kejriwal

NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday reiterated his earlier remarks on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and said that more more migration will now take place than what happened after independence.

The Delhi Chief Minister claimed that law and order will collapse, and subsequently will lead to a rise in thefts, robberies and rapes.

"It is written in the law of CAA that minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan will be given citizenship. This is a poor country, if we open our doors then where will we settle them? There is going to be more migration due to CAA law than what happened after independence. Law and order will collapse, theft, robbery and rape will increase," Kejriwal said.

Further, he pointed out that in the last 75 years, a 63 flyovers were constructed in Delhi, while in the last 10 years of rule of the Aam Aadmi Party government a total of 31 flyovers have been built in 10 years.

"There was a lack of intention to do the work, not a lack of money. 7500 less roads have been built in the last nine years. The amount of water pipelines that have been laid in the last nine years has never been done before. When our government came, there were 4,500 buses in Delhi, today it has become 8,000. We are working for everyone. Today we improved the condition of hospitals. There is a 'Mohalla' Clinic in every locality. Now there is no need to go to private hospitals," the chief minister said.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party MP Ravi Shankar Prasad lashed out at Kejriwal and urged him to "stop telling lies".

"It does not at all deprive any Indians of their citizenship. CAA only gives citizenship to those who are persecuted based on their faith. I want to tell those trying to spread communal tension in the name of CAA, to stop. Stop telling lies. I urge the parties of south India, particularly from Kerala and Tamil Nadu, to stop spreading hatred," he said.

On March 11, the Union Home Ministry notified the rules of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), days ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule.

The CAA rules, introduced by the Narendra Modi government and passed by Parliament in 2019, aim to confer Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants--including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians--who migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014.