Sena MPs Abstain From Voting In Upper House

Shiv Sena MPs in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday were not present in the House during the voting on the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019.

On being asked if they have boycotted the voting, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said, “Yes, Shiv Sena has boycotted the voting.”

The party had on Monday voted in favour of the Bill in the Lok Sabha.

Raut had earlier today said that his party will support the Bill in the Rajya Sabha only if the Centre answers all the questions raised by his party chief Uddhav Thackeray.

“We have to clear our doubts on this Bill. If we do not get satisfactory answers, then our stand could be different from what we took in the Lok Sabha,” Raut told reporters here.

“The vote bank politics should not be played. It is not correct. Do not attempt to create a Hindu-Muslim divide again. Also, there is nothing in this Bill for Tamil Hindus of Sri Lanka,” added Raut.

A day after the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday said that the Shiv Sena will not support the proposed legislation unless the party’s queries in the Rajya Sabha were addressed.

“We will not give support to the Bill unless things are clear. If any citizen is afraid of this Bill than one must clear their doubts. They are our citizens so one must answer their questions too,” Thackeray, who is also the Shiv Sena chief, told reporters here.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 which seeks to give citizenship to refugees from Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and Zorastrian communities fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh was tabled by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in the Rajya Sabha today.

After heated discussions spanning seven hours, the Bill was passed with a majority of 311 votes against 80 in Lok Sabha on Monday.

(ANI)