The former Chief Minister M. Veerappa Moily on Wednesday said the Union government had been unnecessarily creating confusion among people with regard to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), the National Register of Citizenship (NRC), and the National Population Register (NPR), and wondered why citizens should prove their citizenship.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi says the NRC is not mandatory, the Union Home Ministry says otherwise even as the Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the NPR. The UPA government too had conducted the NPR drive earlier, but it was not linked to the NRC. However, the Home Ministry says the NPR will be linked to the NRC in the coming days, thus creating confusion all over, Mr. Moily said.
Imposition of the prohibitory orders in Karnataka from December 18 night was uncalled for and the government should have allowed people to hold peaceful protests. Sudden imposition of the Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure from December 18 night led to the violence in Mangaluru, he said, and added that those participating in the protests did not have information about the prohibitory orders. Police resorting to lathi-charge on protesters instead of allowing them to hold peaceful protests was the reason for the violence, Mr. Moily said.
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Referring to the case registered against the former Minister U.T. Khader for allegedly inciting violence, Mr. Moily wondered whether the government would file cases against BJP leaders such as Nalin Kumar Kateel, Suresh Angadi, Pralhad Joshi, and C.T. Ravi for making provocative speeches. Mr. Khader had only cautioned against implementation of the CAA, saying the State may witness violence on the lines of Assam and other States.
Reiterating the Congress demand for a judicial probe into the violence, Mr. Moily said people had been killed only in BJP-ruled States during the anti-CAA protests.