Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Saturday warned that the government wanted to introduce a National Register of Citizens (NRC) in the garb of bringing in a National Population Register (NPR), which is all set to be rolled out later this year.
“Let us not be under any illusion. In form and content, NPR is a disguised NRC,” the Congress President said in her opening remarks at the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting in New Delhi.
“As a party in government in several states, we must take a wise and uniformed decision on NPR and I invite you to share your views on the subject,” Sonia said in her initial remarks, addressing other Working Committee members.
The veteran Congress leader threw her support behind the citizenship law protestors who had been charged by the police in different states, as she noted that the crackdown on protests was particularly heavy-handed in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi.
“We are appalled by the police excesses and the use of brute force in many towns of UP, in Jamia Milia, in the Jawaharlal Nehru University, Benaras Hindu University, Allahabad University, Delhi University, Gujarat University and the Indian Institute of Science- Bengaluru,” the MP from Rae Bareilli said.
Sonia said that she had no faith in the impartiality of Uttar Pradesh Police to carry out an objective probe, calling for an independent commission to enquire into police’s heavy-handedness in dealing with the citizenship law protests.
The Congress President also reassured the anti-CAA protestors that the “millions of Congress workers” stood with them in the fight for justice.
More to follow…
