A file photo of Mamata Banerjee
Amid countrywide protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has called for a United Nations-supervised referendum on the legislation. "If the BJP has guts, it should go for a UN-monitored referendum on amended Citizenship Act and NRC," the West Bengal CM said at a rally in Kolkata.
"Suddenly, after 73 years of independence, we have to prove that we are Indian citizens. Where was BJP's head and tail at that time?" she questioned.
"The BJP is dividing the country. Don't stop your protest because we have to get the CAA revoked," she appealed to the people attending the demonstration rally.
BJP workers in skull caps damaging public property
Banerjee also accused the BJP's cadre of donning skull caps so to not be identified while damaging public property. The Trinamool Congress head said that this was being done to malign a particular community.
A vocal opponent of the CAA and the Nation Register of Citizens, the TMC government has also started issuing advertisements to television and print media asking people not to panic.
A 4-minute audio-visual clip being aired by local TV channels shows Banerjee asking people not to panic or be misled by "false claims" about NRC.
BJP chief Amit Shah had repeatedly said during the Lok Sabha poll campaign that the NRC exercise, which was limited to Assam, will also be extended to West Bengal.
Though the Centre is yet to decide on whether to replicate the NRC exercise in West Bengal, large queues of people are being seen outside the offices of BDOs, borough offices and civic body offices across the state for the last few days to procure documents that could prove that the state has been their place of residence.
ALSO READ: Govt scared of India's most accomplished historian: Mamata Banerjee on Guha's detention
