Meghalaya BJP legislator threatens to quit party

One of the two BJP legislators in Meghalaya on Thursday threatened to quit the party party if the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill is passed by the Rajya Sabha. In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP legislator Sanbor Shullai said he would leave the party within a month if the controversial Bill is passed in the Rajya Sabha.

"Considering the outcome of the proposed Bill, I have left it to the wisdom of the people of my state and have decided to leave the party within one month in the event if the proposed Bill is passed in Rajya Sabha," Shullai noted in the letter. The BJP which has two members in the 60-member Meghalaya assembly is supporting the National People's Party (NPP) coalition government.

Shullai's party legislator Alexander Hek is a senior cabinet minister. In the letter, Shullai reminded Modi that during the BJP National Convention at Ram Lila Maidan, New Delhi on January 12, Shullai along with party workers had submitted a memorandum opposing the Citizenship Bill, citing various reasons which can affect the demography of Meghalaya and the northeastern region if the Bill is implemented.

The Lok Sabha has already passed the Bill that seeks to remove hurdles in eligible migrants from six minority groups from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afganistan from getting Indian citizenship despite opposition by political parties including the Congress and Trinamool Congress.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)