Arunachal Pradesh opposes CAB, seeks other regulations

ITANAGAR: Various stakeholders, including community-based organisations, students' bodies and political leaders, on Wednesday unequivocally opposed the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) which is likely to be tabled during the winter session of Parliament.
The Consultative Committee on CAB constituted by the state government on Wednesday held the final meeting under the chairmanship of home minister Bamang Felix, with all the stakeholders of the state to seek their opinion, as decided by the state Cabinet in a meeting on November 18.
Chief minister Pema Khandu on Monday convened a special cabinet meeting to discuss the report of the consultative committee, which was submitted to the government.
Considering the sensitivity of the issue, the cabinet decided to have a final discussion with all stakeholders together and forward the recommendations to the Union home ministry.
After a deliberation that continued for several hours, the meeting unequivocally opposed the CAB, and recommended for enacting the provisions of Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation 1873 and Chin Hills Regulation 1896 under the Act.
"For Arunachal Pradesh, all provisions of the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation 1873 (Regulation 5 of 1873) and all provisions of sections 22, 23, 38 and 40 of the Chin Hills Regulation 1896 (Regulation No 5 of 1896) shall be deemed to have been enacted under this act and shall have effect accordingly," the meeting recommended.
"The provisions of this act shall not be applicable to any person, who has been residing in or has entered or may enter Arunachal Pradesh in violation of the BEFR 1873 or the provisions of CHR 1896 or the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1961 (Act No 23 of 1961) as amended from time to time," the meeting further recommended.
While North East Students' Organisation (NESO) representative Pritam Bhai Sonam opposed the Bill, Arunachal Indigenous Tribes Forum (AITF) (a conglomeration of various community-based organisations of the state) president Bengia Tolum suggested introduction of National Register of Citizens (NRC) in the state.
The recommendations will be submitted to the state government, who will forward it to the Union home ministry.
Union home minister Amit Shah had said on October 1 that Parliament will pass the CAB, which will grant citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan after seven years of stay in the country, even if they do not have proper documents.
The indigenous people of the northeastern states fear that the entry of these people will endanger their identity and livelihood.