Citizenship (Amendment) Bill clears Rajya Sabha, soon to be a law

New Delhi : The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill has been passed by the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday amid violent protests in the North Eastern region of India. The mandate came with 125 voting for it and 99 against.

The controversial legislation was cleared by the Lok Sabha on Tuesday with the support of as many as 334 MPs.

While, the bill was tabled in both the houses by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, it was strongly opposed by the Opposition with claims that it is discrimination towards the Muslim community. Opposition leaders, who claim that the bill can never survive "judicial scrutiny", are expected to challenge it in the Supreme Court.

Home Minister Amit Shah, tabling the bill in the Rajya Sabha, said Muslims of the country need not fear because "they are and will remain citizens of the country". Hitting out at what he called "attempts to spread misinformation", he claimed that the bill was only for minority communities in neighbouring countries and had "nothing to do" with Muslims in India.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the passage of the bill and called it a landmark day for the nation. "A landmark day for India and our nation's ethos of compassion and brotherhood! Glad that the #CAB2019 has been passed in the #RajyaSabha. Gratitude to all the MPs who voted in favour of the bill. This bill will alleviate the suffering of many who faced persecution for years," Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted soon after the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was passed.

Uddhav Thackeray led Shiv Sena, which recently broke ties with the BJP in Maharashtra, staged a walk out ahead of the voting for the passage of the bill.