Batting for citizenship bill, Himanta says can't allow Assam to become another Kashmir

Defending the controversial citizenship bill, Assam's Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma Friday said its implementation is a must for the state to ensure it does not face a Kashmir-like situation in the future.

He claimed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill can be an "opportunity" for not just Assam but the entire Northeastern part of the country.

Assam and other Northeastern states have been witnessing strong protests over the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government's attempt to pass the citizenship bill in Parliament.

The bill seeks to grant citizenship to people from minority communities -- Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians -- from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan after six years of residence in India even if they don't possess any proper document.

The bill was passed in the Lok Sabha on January 8 but the Rajya Sabha did not take it up in the just-concluded winter session.

"People of Assam need to understand that this is not an Assam specific ..