KOCHI: The Syro-Malabar Church Synod has demanded that the central government come forward to address the concerns of the country regarding the amendment of the citizenship law. The second day of the Synod was followed by a detailed discussion of the Citizenship Amendment. Lawmakers must take care to ensure that India’s sacred constitution is protected. Secularism, which is the fundamental value of the Constitution, should not be in doubt by this law. The Synod demanded that the government be prepared to accept all the refugees in the country without religious dignity and give them citizenship so that there is no way to return.
The government should also consider the cultural heritage of the Northeastern states when rehabilitating new citizenship holders. The move to separate some refugees on religious grounds and deny them citizenship and permanently reside in refugee camps should be reexamined. The government’s position in this regard needs more clarity. It is equally immoral to adopt violent means to defy the law and to try to silence popular struggles. The Synod concluded that the State has a responsibility to make every citizen aware that secular and equitable justice is practiced in the great country of India.
