Chief Minister Pema Khandu announced to constitute a consultative committee to safeguard the rights of the indigenous people of Arunachal following the central government’s proposal for enactment of Citizenship (Amendment) Bill or CAB.

Khandu said the committee will bring together all the community-based organisations (CBO), civil societies and the students union of the state for consultation on the CAB.

He said the committee will take inputs from the civil society organisations on adding ‘safeguards’ to the proposed CAB so that the protections given to the tribal people of Arunachal under Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation Act of 1873 and Chin Hill Regulations Act, 1896 is not diluted.

He said the committee will also be responsible for interpreting the various provisions of the CAB and to add clauses for the protection of Arunachali people. Chief Minister further said Union Home Minister Amit Shah during the recent NEDA meeting at Guwahati had assured that CAB will not override any provisions that have for long protected the rights of the tribal people of the Northeast.

The Bill seeks to grant Indian citizenship to the people belonging to the Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis who have become the victims of religious persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan and entered India on or before December 31st, 2014.

The Chief Minister also informed that state government had earlier opposed the CAB expressing its objection that the Bill should not be tabled in the parliament without adequately addressing the concerns of the indigenous people of the state.

Photo credit: CMO Arunachal Pradesh