Assam Congress slams Centre's CAA cut-off extension, calls it BJP’s vote-bank ploy

Guwahati, Sept 4: The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC), on Thursday, strongly condemned the Centre’s Gazette Notification bringing into effect the Immigration and Foreigners Exemption Order, terming it a blatant “vote-bank strategy” of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Addressing the press in Guwahati, senior Congress leader Ripun Bora said, “Under CAA-2019, non-Muslim migrants from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh who had entered India illegally up to December 31, 2014, were eligible for citizenship. Now, through this new order, the BJP-led government has extended the cut-off date by another decade, till December 31, 2024, thereby paving the way for more illegal entrants to be granted citizenship.”

Bora alleged that the notification itself proves infiltration into India, particularly Assam, is still continuing.

“If foreigners can break the law and yet be forgiven, it only reflects the mindset adopted by the BJP. Has Assam become a dumping ground for the BJP?” he asked, demanding answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

The Congress argued that while the Centre claims the law is meant for the entire country, its impact will be felt the most in Assam, where illegal immigrants stand to gain directly.

“This order makes it clear that the BJP has no intention of stopping infiltration. They want to keep the issue alive for political mileage. During Congress rule, there was no such wave of infiltration. The BJP must explain who is letting foreigners in today,” Bora said.

The APCC further demanded that the Assam government clearly inform the Centre that the order must not be implemented in the state.

“The NRC has been deliberately left incomplete so that new foreigners can be accommodated. Mizoram and Meghalaya have already refused to implement CAA. Why has Assam’s Chief Minister failed to take a stand? We condemn his silence,” Bora stated.

Pointing out that Assam is uniquely burdened with the NRC, Foreigners’ Tribunals, and Sixth Schedule provisions, Bora added, “Congress once provided these safeguards to protect Assam from infiltrators. Now the BJP is dismantling them and pushing the state toward destruction.”

Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition Debabrata Saikia termed the notification a “second version of CAA".

“Illegal entrants will now enjoy the same benefits as legitimate citizens. Even without documents, they will be treated as legal. This effectively nullifies the Assam Accord and the safeguards it had provided. The circular is nothing short of a second CAA,” Saikia said.

The Congress concluded by urging the people of Assam to reject the BJP in the 2026 Assembly elections.