Austria amended law to grant citizenship to Jews: Ram Madhav

CHENNAI: Defending the CAA, BJP leader Ram Madhav on Saturday said even Austria had amended its law to grant citizenship to Jews and asserted that people coming to India for genuine reasons can seek to become its nationals.

The stand that persecuted religious minorities fleeing Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh should be accommodated and provided citizenship was echoed by leaders, including Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Pranab Mukherjee and even the CPM, he said.

Persecution of minorities in such neighbouring countries was an "established fact," he said.

Addressing a meet here on the contentious law, the senior Saffron party leader said: "Austria amended its citizenship Act to grant citizenship to children, grand children and great grand children of Jews."

Asserting that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act only fast tracked grant of citizenship to minorities from neighbouring countries, he said the protests against it were not happening for "valid reasons and they are misinformed."

"I appeal to our Muslim brethren to not fall prey to false propaganda. The CAA does not apply to any Indian citizen, but only to those coming from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh," he said.

He said people coming to India for "genuine reasons" from anywhere can seek citizenship.