NEW DELHI, Dec 7: Even as he defended the right of police to fire back to counter an attack, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Saturday came out against extra constitutional executions as being against the nation’s Constitutional spirit, while also opposing the Citizenship Amendment Bill, which he said would not be allowed to be passed in the state Assembly.
Speaking at a session on ‘a better tomorrow’ at HT Summit 2019 here, Capt Singh said the Congress was opposed to the NRC as a tool to force people to leave the country.
In his usual candid style, Capt Singh came out strongly against the National Register of Citizens (NRC) as being against the democratic spirit of India, which is a ‘free country’. (PTI)
“Let the proposed Citizenship Amendment Bill be passed by Parliament and come to our Assembly, where we have 2/3rd majority?it will not be passed in my state,” he asserted, when asked how Punjab would tackle the problem, if the Centre makes it a law.
“What if Bangladesh refuses to take back those asked to leave Assam,” asked the Punjab Chief Minister, adding that the Centre could not take a unilateral decision on such important matters. Such a move would create problems, he said, asking “Can we refuse Indians settled abroad from coming back home, if they so want?”
Asserting that BJP’s nationalist agenda was no longer working in elections, as was evident from the results in Maharashtra and Haryana, Capt Singh said while at heart, every Indian is a nationalist, people want the fulfillment of their aspirations first.
The recent poll results were a clear indication of ‘winds of change’ after over a term of the NDA government, he said, underlining the importance of performance for any party to stay in government.
If a party does not perform, it will be shunted out, he said, pointing to the abysmal poll record of the Akalis in Punjab since they were wiped out in the last Assembly polls.
In reference to the killing of rape accused in Telangana, Capt Singh said, “If the men had fired at the cops, the action could have been justified.”
He, however, made it clear that there was no such thing as encounter. In his state, police were very clear on this issue, and terrorists and goondas/gangsters had been asked to lay down their arms or face the consequences, he added.
The Congress Chief Minister, who had the upset BJP’s dream of a Congress-mukt Bharat, fielded a host of questions on a range of issues during the session, including the Telangana shootout.
(UNI)
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