TMC MP Advocates for Voting ID as Citizenship Proof

TMC MP Mamata Thakur argued in the Rajya Sabha that voting ID cards should be sufficient for granting citizenship, decrying additional requirements like ancestral documents and detention camps as dehumanizing. She emphasized that conditions degrading citizens are unacceptable, advocating for unconditional citizenship without bureaucratic barriers.

TMC MP Mamata Thakur on Friday made a strong case for using a voting ID card as sufficient proof for granting citizenship. She criticized additional requirements such as submitting ancestral documents and the threat of detention camps as a dehumanizing process.

Raising the issue in the Rajya Sabha, Thakur argued against any conditions that degrade individuals, saying, "Forcing citizens to furnish documents repeatedly and making them renounce their citizenship to reapply is degrading." She highlighted that using a voter ID card should suffice for proving one's citizenship status.

Thakur used the example of Indian athletes at the Paris Olympics, who were never questioned about their caste, language, or religion, to underscore her point. She called for natural, unconditional citizenship, stating, "If you can't grant unconditional citizenship, no one has the right to disrespect our brothers and sisters by asking them to show papers. Let us live and progress together."

(With inputs from agencies.)