'Where will BJP keep poor people from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh?'

NEW DELHI: AAP leader and Delhi Minister Atishi hit out at the Centre over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) on Wednesday and questioned the BJP whether they have 1.5-2 crore houses for the refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.

"Where will the BJP keep poor people from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh? Does the BJP have 1.5-2 crore houses to give them? No, they will live in slums in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata because the BJP has no space to give them," said Atishi. Just days ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha election, the Union Home Ministry notified the Citizenship Amendment Rules, 2024. This would now enable the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) passed by Parliament in 2019.

CAA targets Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, and Christian illegal migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, making them eligible for Indian citizenship. Speaking to ANI, the Delhi minister further said, "If they do not get jobs, they will commit theft and robbery which will turn the law and order situation into a bad state." She lashed out at "vote bank politics" of the BJP and said, "Look at history, no country opens its doors to other countries.

What has happened to India, the BJP and Modi government want to bring people from there. Is it only because those 1.5-2 crore people became their vote bank?" Atishi further asked, "Why is the Modi government not trying to bring back the 11 lakh people and businessmen who left the country?" Meanwhile, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal joined his INDIA bloc partners to take on the centre over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

Kejriwal termed the government decision as "very dangerous" and said that the government money that should be spent on the development of family and country will now be spent on allowing Pakistanis to settle in India.

"After ruling the country for 10 years and just before the elections, they have to talk about the Citizenship Amendment Act. If you had done some work in these 10 years, perhaps you would have asked for votes on your work instead of on CAA.

It means that a large number of minorities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh will be brought to our country, and they will be employed and settled here. The youth of the country are not being given employment by the BJP government. Many people in India do not have houses but BJP wants to bring people from Pakistan and give them houses here," he said