Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday said the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) does not deprive any Indian citizen of his or her citizenship.
Speaking at an event, the VP said that CAA is aimed at providing relief to persecuted religious minorities in the neighbourhood without infringing upon the rights of any existing citizens.
He expressed his disappointment over the “failure of some sections to realise the soothing impact of steps like CAA guided by the values of secularism, equality, and justice enshrined in our Constitution”.
“It is unfortunate that some failed to recognise the historical context and soothing impact from human rights perspectives to persecuted minorities in the neighbourhood,” the VP said.
It may be mentioned that the Centre recently notified rules for the implementation of the CAA, paving the way for granting citizenship to people of certain faiths facing persecution in neighbouring countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan.
The CAA rules aim to give Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants, including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians, who migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014.
Recognising the role of the media as the fourth pillar of democracy and its influence over social discourse, the VP stressed upon the need for an independent and objective media.
“Media should be an agent to convey the right perspectives to understand India rather than be a prey to orchestrated narratives seeking to taint and tarnish our image,” he said.
Cautioning against the politicisation of media, Dhankhar said, “Media can not be a registered, recognised or unrecognised political party.”
Referring to the challenges of misinformation and fake news, the VP underlined the responsibility of the media to be a watchdog and curb such misinformation.