Samikhsya Bureau
Sometimes some politicians look for the odd reasons to hog the limelight only without any reason or rhyme.
Let’s take a look at the intent of the senior Congress leader Srikant Jena, a former union minister. He has shot a letter to the chief minister of Odisha urging the latter to withdraw support to the CAA and NPR.
It is a different matter that some of the non-BJP ruled states have passed resolutions against the CAA, an Act already passed by the parliament that remains binding for all the states to implement.
And such a situation can only be reversed through a legal interference that now looks even remote. So, on that account the Naveen Patnaik-led government played it safe by supporting the CAA but not the NRC which is believed to be in the pipeline in the days to come.
Whether the CAA or NPR is violating the spirit of the Constitution that doesn’t allow implementation of any law on the basis of caste or religion, but arguments have been made that, CAA doesn’t invite any such deviation.
But, there are precedents suggesting that, in a federal structure the states cannot be forced to toe the line drawn by the Centre. In that case only the apex court of India can only set aside the Act by a ruling, feel some experts on constitutional matters. Instances can be seen in US where the states have refused such implementation of CAA.
On CAA Cong may stand divided!
What seems clear that, CAA has been made a tool for politics both by the NDA and the opposition as well. Which, in particular the ruling dispensation at the Centre uses like a cover-fire from more important issues like economic slowdown, unemployment and rising inflation.
Speaking to the media on Sunday, none other than the senior Congress leader,Kapil Sibal, a legal luminary, has gone on record stating that, once the CAA has been enacted as a law by the parliament, that becomes binding for the States to implement the Act.
That leaves the main opposition party in a dilemma and what complicates the situation is the continuing anti-CAA protests all over which ultimately boil down to a kind of confrontation between the Centre and the states unwilling to implement CAA.
