The controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, or CAB, has sparked dissent within Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) with senior leaders Prashant Kishor and Pavan Varma expressing disappointment over the party's stand on the controversial legislation, which seeks to give Indian citizenship to non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.
The CAB bill was passed on the Lok Sabha Monday night after an hours-long debate. Nitish Kumar's JD(U) voted in support of the bill.
Soon after, JD(U) leader Prashant Kishor tweeted his disapproval of his party's stand. Kishor, who is known to speak his mind, said he was "disappointed" with the party's stand on the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, calling it "incongruous with the party's constitution that carries the word secular thrice on the very first page and the leadership that is supposedly guided by Gandhian ideals".
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On Tuesday, Pavan Varma, a former diplomat and a senior JDU leader, echoed similar views. "The [Citizenship Amendment] Bill is unconstitutional, discriminatory, and against the unity and harmony of the country, apart from being against the secular principles of the JDU. Gandhiji would have strongly disapproved it," Varma, who has is known to often speak out against the party stand, said in a tweet. "I urge Shri Nitish Kumar to reconsider support to the CAB in the Rajya Sabha."
