GUWAHATI, April 8 - With the BJP reiterating its commitment to enact the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill or CAB in its manifesto for the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls, junior NDA partner Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) today said that the regional party remains committed in its stand against the contentious Bill.
�The BJP�s manifesto has not stated anything new and only reiterated its earlier stand. However, we also remain firm in our opposition to CAB and will oppose any attempt to bring back the Bill,� Ramendra Narayan Kalita, general secretary of AGP, told The Assam Tribune.
In its manifesto � titled �Sankalp Bharat Sashakt Bharat� � released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party chief Amit Shah and other senior leaders today in New Delhi, the BJP stated, �We are committed to the enactment of the Citizenship Amendment Bill for the protection of individuals of religious minority communities from neighbouring countries escaping persecution.�
Kalita said that the AGP has not moved from its stand regarding the CAB. �We will not compromise on the issue. That has been made clear time and again. In our manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls, which will be released shortly, we will definitely mention our party�s view on CAB,� he said.
The AGP leader claimed that BJP�s decision to make CAB a part of its manifesto will not create any confusion among the alliance partners. �It will also have no impact on our electoral prospects in the parliamentary polls,� he said.
The AGP had in January this year snapped its ties with the BJP on the issue of CAB. However, the regional party renewed its alliance with the BJP last month and entered into a seat-sharing arrangement with the saffron party for the Lok Sabha elections.
