No decision has been taken to prepare NRC at the national level, Centre informs parliament

The Union Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai on March 22 said that no decision has been taken to prepare NRC at the national level.

He gave informed the same while responding to BJP MP Sushil Kumar Modi's question about the NRC, Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), and NPR.

Rai further informed the parliament that the move to update the National Population Register (NPR) and the first phase of Census 2021 was postponed following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The government decided to amend the Citizenship Act in December 2019 in order to fast-track the citizenship process for non-muslims, who have entered India from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh before December 31, 2014. However, the decision triggered protests across the country.

The opposition criticized the move and claimed that same was unconstitutional as it left out the Muslims and linked faith to citizenship in a secular country.

They further claimed that it could result in the expulsion or detention of the Muslims unable to provide the documentation if the law is seen in the context of a proposed pan-India NRC.

On the other hand, a process carried out by in Assam to detect immigrants without documents led to the exclusion of around two million people from the NRC in 2018.

NPR too has triggered controversy with its opponents claiming the exercise is linked to the NRC. However, the present government has described the NPR as the first step towards a nationwide NRC.