Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Monday that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has seen minimal interest in Assam, with only eight people applying under the Act, and just two attending interviews.
Sarma suggested that many Hindu Bengali families, which might be expected to apply, are confident in their citizenship status, believing they entered India before 1971 and thus do not see the need to apply under the CAA.
The CAA, passed by the Central government in 2019, seeks to expedite Indian citizenship for Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and Christians who fled religious persecution in Muslim-majority Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan before December 31, 2014.
Sarma criticised anti-CAA protest leaders, who had previously warned that up to 50 lakh illegal immigrants might gain citizenship under the amended law. He argued that these claims were exaggerated and have been proven baseless, given the low number of applications.
The issue of citizenship remains a contentious one in Assam, which has a history of anti-outsider movements.
In 2019, the state saw significant unrest during anti-CAA protests, resulting in the deaths of five people.
Sarma mentioned that the protestors, who had instilled fear among the population, should now be held accountable for their actions.