National Conference leader Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said notifying rules for the Citizenship Amendment Act days before the announcement of Lok Sabha polls indicates that the BJP wants to use religion in the upcoming election as it is not confident about winning 400 seats.

“The Muslims have always been a target of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is not something new for the party. Even in the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), the Muslims have been made a specific target. This is not new politics for the BJP, this has been their approach before as well,” he told reporters.

Advertisement

The rules for implementation of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act 2019 were notified on Monday, paving the way for granting citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, according to officials.

In a sarcastic remark, Omar termed the CAA notification as the “Ramzan gift” for the Muslims and expressed regret over it.

“It was passed in 2019, but notifying the CAA (rules) just before the Lok Sabha elections are announced makes it clear what the aim is. They (BJP) were saying that after the construction of the Ram Temple, they cannot lose. But perhaps they feel that their position is weak and that is why they have to use these new weapons,” he said.

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti said the NDA-led Centre was following the Hindu Mahasabha’s concept of two nation theory by implementing the Act. She said going forward with the Act even when the matter is pending before the Supreme Court, is an attempt to divert attention from the government’s failures.

She wrote on ‘X’, “77 years after partition, BJP is still wedded to the concept of two nation theory of Hindu Mahasabha. To further their agenda they have thus implemented CAA to create another partition among our people.”

“This sudden urgency in its implementation despite the case being pending in honourable SC, is a desperate attempt to divert attention from its all round failures and engage people in hate politics. Appeal to all communities especially Muslims not to walk into their trap,” she added.

CPI(M) leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami charged that implementation of the CAA was against the basic tenets of the Constitution. “The foundation of the Constitution and criteria for citizenship of India are irrespective of religion or creed of a person. This foundation has been grossly violated through the CAA,” he said.

“It is a deliberate attempt to divert attention from the government’s failure on governance and development fronts. They are targeting the minorities for exclusion and it will reduce the minorities to second class citizens,” he added.