A day after the Ministry of Home Affairs notified the rules for implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), thousands of refugees living in Kendrapara, Malkangiri, and Nabarangpur areas of Odisha expressed their happiness.
These rules will now enable minorities, who have settled in the country after fleeing from persecution on religious grounds in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan, to acquire citizenship in the country.
Notably, the CAA enacted by the Parliament in December 2019 had earlier triggered protests across the country. It granted citizenship to the refugees who had come and settled before 2014.
However, Congress questioned why the refugees from Nepal and Sri Lanka have not been included in its purview.
But the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) have welcomed it as a historic decision.
As per reports, thousands of refugees who are now living in the Mahakalpara and Rajnagar areas of Kendrapara had intruded into the area in the 1950s to escape from the turmoil of the civil war in Pakistan. As many as 1237 of them settled in Kendrapara, and are now eking out their living from fishing and ferrying boats. But they have not been granted Indian citizenship.
Siuli Mandal, an illegal immigrant in Mahakalpara said, "We are happy that after the implementation of the CAA, we will have development. Our nation will develop and our children will face no problems. We will get land rights.”
On the other hand, the number of illegal settlers continues to rise in various parts of Kendrapara. Over the years, they have allegedly intruded into Bhitarakanika and then into other coastal parts through sea routes. About 90 percent of the illegal settlers living in Talachua, Dangamala, Gahirmatha, Jambu, Kharinasi, Batighar, and some other areas are from Bangladesh.
As per the information presented in the Assembly in 2005, there were 1649 refugees in Kendrapara, 1112 in Jagatsinghpur, 313 in Bhadrak, 665 in Malkangiri, and 106 in Nabarangpur. However, as per rough estimates, their numbers have increased almost threefold over the years. Now, all of them are going to be Indian citizens.
Bikash Majumdaar from Mahakalpara said, "After CAA implementation, our social, economic, and political issues will be sorted out gradually. Our children will get an education in schools. We thank the Central government for this.”
Deba Mandal from Paradip said, "When we go abroad we face problems because of a lack of credentials. Now, we will not be treated as refugees. We will have voting rights.”
However, Congress leader Sudarshan Das said, "Refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh were included in the CAA. But those who have taken asylum here from Nepal, Tibet, and Sri Lanka could have been treated as refugees. The CAA is meant to divide the nation and create an atmosphere of unrest.”
BJP leader Arabinda Dhali observed, “Those who have no citizenship have been facing a lot of problems. With CAA implementation, their issues will be resolved.”
BJD leader Ramesh Majhi supported the CAA saying, “The BJD has supported the bill which is good for the common people. All will benefit.”
(By OdishaTV Bureau)