If even one Jharkhandi is uprooted due to CAA, won't implement it: Hemant Soren
New Delhi, Dec 24: Jharkhand chief minister-designate Hemant Soren on Tuesday said he will go through the details of the citizenship law and if even one person from his state is uprooted due to the amended legislation, then it will not be implemented.
Soren, who led the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-Congress-RJD alliance to a win in the assembly polls, also said that he had not gone through the details of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the possible NRC and he would make a "holistic review" of them.
"I have not gone through the NRC and CAB (now CAA) documents that the government of India wants to implement. Citizens are on the roads against these laws. We will go through it and if it uproots even one Jharkhandi from his or her home, then it won't be implemented," 44-year-old Soren told PTI in an interview.
He was on Tuesday formally elected the JMM legislature party leader and will be sworn in on December 29 at 1 pm.
"The NPR has been done today. We will do a holistic review of the entire act and the policy at the state level and I need to be convinced that not a single Jharkhandi is uprooted from his or her home due to this law," the JMM working president said when asked about his take on the CAA and NRC with many states ruled by Opposition parties asserting that they will not implement the controversial citizenship law.
His remarks came hours after the Union Cabinet approved over Rs 3,941.35 crore for updating the National Population Register.
According to the CAA, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014 and facing religious persecution will be granted Indian citizenship after staying in the country for five years.
Protests against the CAA demanding revoking of the law have rocked the country, including in West Bengal, in the past few days.
Asked about his alliance's victory in the Jharkhand polls, Soren said it was a win for democracy and against the "divisive policies" that the BJP had implemented in the state.
Results have shown that local issues in states are top most priority of people and their aspirations should be addressed, he said, adding that elections are fought on ideologies.
Asked about his priorities as chief minister, Soren said he would focus on land rights act to give land to the landless.
Delinking Aadhaar with Public Distribution System and rationalising the distribution of PDS would also be a priority, he said.
He also listed tackling unemployment, creating an employment roadmap for the state, providing water for irrigation and potable drinking water to every household, being on top of his government's agenda.
Creating a holistic plan for reviving and boosting public health and education infrastructure is also very important, he said.
Welfare of tribals, backwards and minorities will be high on the new government's agenda, he said.
The opposition JMM-Congress-RJD alliance stormed to power in the tribal-dominated state in the assembly poll results announced on Monday, ending the five-year rule of the BJP.
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Women's reservation must be implemented without being made contingent on delimitation: CM
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday said that the Women's Reservation Bill is a long-overdue reform that must be implemented immediately within the existing framework, without being made contingent on delimitation.
Terming the delimitation as the political re-engineering at the cost of southern states, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said that these states will stand united, speak in one voice, and defend the true spirit of federalism.
The leaders' statements came a day before the Constitutional Amendment Bill with provisions on women's reservation implementation and delimitation was tabled in the Lok Sabha.
"You are right in highlighting the larger implications of the proposed delimitation approach and the concerns it raises for southern states. We wholeheartedly support the Women's Reservation Bill - it is a long-overdue reform that must be implemented immediately within the existing framework, without being made contingent on delimitation," Siddaramaiah said in a post on 'X'.
He was replying to his Telangana counterpart A Revanth Reddy's post on 'X' with a letter, urging the former to unitedly resist moves to push a pro rata model to increase Lok Sabha seats, which would be highly detrimental and inimical to the interests of southern states.
"Any exercise that reshapes political representation must be undertaken with utmost care. The Union Government must engage all states in a transparent and consultative process, and ensure that fairness, federal balance, and consensus guide this critical decision," Siddaramaiah added.
Shivakumar said that this is not a delimitation, but political re-engineering "at the cost of southern states".
"The proposal to increase Lok Sabha seats from 543 to 850 will systematically reduce the voice of the South, while rewarding unchecked population growth elsewhere. This is nothing but punishing progress and good governance," he posted on 'X'.
Clarifying that Congress fully supports women's reservation and in fact, it was party's top leader Sonia Gandhi's vision and commitment that brought this dream to the national agenda, the Deputy CM said, "We demand that it be implemented without linking it to delimitation or seat expansion."
"I urge the Union Govt to not hide behind women's empowerment to push a deely unfair political agenda. Rushing such a massive restructuring of India's democracy during elections, without transparency or consultation, is deeply suspicious and unacceptable," he said.
Asserting that India's strength lies in balance not domination, and in fairness, not manipulation, Shivakumar said, "The Southern states will stand united, speak in one voice, and defend the true spirit of federalism."
"We will not allow the South to be politically marginalised."
