Kerala Governor calls CAA a 'solution' citing decline in minority population in Pak

On Thursday, the Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan lauded the Citizenship (Amendment) Act calling it an "extraordinary solution" in the wake of minorities fleeing countries after facing religious persecution. Speaking at an event in Mallapuram, Kerala, Khan pulled in data and facts proving the terrible decline in the percentage of minorities in neighboring countries of Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan. He also had figures to support that minority numbers in India had only but increased. 

Read: 'Ready to meet anti-CAA protestors,' says Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan

"There are over 19 crore official Muslims in India. Everybody admits that the number stands at over 20 crore. At the time of partition, there were 17 per cent Hindus in Pakistan who are left with less than 1.7 per cent today. In Bangladesh, Hindus were 30 per cent, now they make of just 17 per cent of the total population," he said.

Liaquat–Nehru Pact violated

On the nearly halfway fall in Hindu numbers in Bangladesh Khan asks "Where did they disappear?" Khan further supported CAA saying that "Is not it an exceptional situation and it needs an extraordinary solution?" also bringing in Pakistan not adhering to the Nehru-Liyaqat pact to protect minorities. The Liaquat–Nehru Pact was a bilateral treaty between Liaquat Ali Khan PM of Pakistan and Jawaharlal Nehru PM of India in 1950, where refugees were allowed to return to dispose of their property. Under the pact, abducted women and looted property were to be returned, forced conversions became unrecognized, and minority rights were confirmed.

Read: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan says Kerala stands united against CAA

Arif Khan also quoted former Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh's speech where he spoke about minorities facing religious persecution. "Minorities in a country like Bangladesh have to face persecution. If the situation forces them to flee, then it is our moral duty to provide them with Indian citizenship," he quoted Singh as saying Dec 18, 2003.

The Kerala Governor appealed to please get rid of "fear'' and assured that society has rule of law, and the constitution. "Citizen's religion can not be brought in (to protest against the CAA) as this law is about people who migrated to India without papers," he said. 

Read: ABVP worker thrashed by SFI members in Kerala for putting forth his views on CAA

Read: Kerala: Students in Thiruvananthapuram protest against the amended citizenship law

(With Agency Inputs)