Mayawati questions Centre's haste in getting Citizenship Bill passed in Parliament

BSP supremo Mayawati on Friday questioned the Centre's haste in getting the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill passed in Parliament and said it would have been better had the same promptness been shown in introducing strict laws to check crimes against women.

In a tweet in Hindi, she said, "It is well known that the BSP strongly opposed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in both the Houses of Parliament and also voted against it." "It would have been better had the Centre shown the same haste -- it showed in getting the legislation passed -- in framing strict laws for checking women harassment and rape and murder," Mayawati said. She added, "Merely writing letters to states in this connection is not going to serve any meaningful purpose."

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday and by the Lok Sabha on Monday. As per the Act, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014 and facing religious persecution there will not be treated as illegal immigrants but given Indian citizenship.

-PTI