News Tamil Nadu

‘Actor Vijay’ Goes The Dravidian Stock Way, Opposes CAA That Gives Dignity To Persecuted Non-Muslims Of Pak, Afghanistan And Bangladesh

March 12, 2024
The Commune

The Modi government, led by the NDA, declared the initiation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) preceding the imminent Lok Sabha elections. This choice to put into effect the regulations of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act occurred before the activation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).

In a statement on X, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) declared, “Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will be notifying today, the Rules under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA-2019). These rules, called the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 will enable the persons eligible under CAA-2019 to apply for grant of Indian citizenship. The applications will be submitted in a completely online mode for which a web portal has been provided.”

As expected, the Dravidian parties expressed opposition to the notification of CAA. However, what caught everyone’s attention was Actor Vijay coming out with a statement on his party – Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam’s X handle opposing the CAA. 

The press release read, “Any law like the Indian Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 (CAA) is not acceptable in an environment where all the people of the country are living in social harmony. The rulers should give an assurance that they will not implement this law in Tamil Nadu.”

To date, it was unclear what path actor Vijay’s party would take with respect to doing politics. This was especially after learning of his party’s name which did not have the word “Dravidam” in it. Many expected him to offer a really good alternative to the existing Dravidian parties. But with this statement, the social media platforms erupted with anger and disappointment. Here are some netizen reactions. Some questioned if Vijay had indeed any basic knowledge of the CAA that he made such a statement. 

 

Some others challenged Vijay to give a press meet and explain to his fans and followers about his understanding of the CAA and why it is detrimental to the “harmony” of the country.

 

 

 

Some compared him to MNM’s Kamal Haasan who recently made a u-turn to join hands with the DMK in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls – a party which he said he would be an alternative for.

 

It is noteworthy that CAA is under the Union list and it is the Parliament that has the power to implement it, the State has no role to play. 

 

Several others questioned his silence on the recent drug bust and the connection with the Tamil film industry.

The CAA has nothing to do with Indians in the first place. It applies to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis, and Christians from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan where they are facing religious persecution, and those who already arrived in India before 1 December 2014. 

It benefits the persecuted minorities from these countries by reducing their residency requirement from 11 to 5 years and they can claim citizenship as a right under this law. Muslims on the other hand from these countries are also not affected – they will go through the usual process of acquiring citizenship through naturalisation rules – 11 years of residency. 

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