NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah said heckling Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan at the Indian History Congress (IHC) at Kannur is seen very seriously. The government should have taken action against historian Irfan Habib for the attack against the governor, which is a constitutional position and the issue is under the consideration of the centre, said Shah.

Meantime, Shah said the central government has taken the incident very seriously. Protests were politically driven and asked congress why violence did not take place in states where opposition parties are in office.

Opposition parties, in particular the Congress, have political objectives, and the opposition parties should explain why there is violence in the BJP-ruled states alone. He justified police action against the protestors.

Shah said people know well who are behind the violence, police can’t sit idle if buses are torched. CAA is about giving citizenship and not about taking away anyone’s, the people should understand this. He also repeated that a nationwide National Register of Citizens (NRC) is not currently under consideration.

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka are speaking pure lies on CAA. I repeat citizenship of no Indian will be lost due to the new law and we have launched a countrywide campaign to make people understand this, said Shah. Criticism of a few people cannot stall the country, he said.

Shah criticised opposition parties for attacking National Population Register (NPR), a census related exercise. NPR is needed to frame schemes for the poor, he said.