NEW DELHI: The furore over Assam's National Register of Citizens (NRC) list got intense on Tuesday, with both the government and opposition debating the motives and objectives of the register. The draft NRC released by the Assam government yesterday puts as many as 40 lakh people in the state in danger of losing their voting rights.West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee today warned that the list will divide the people and create a civil war-like situation in the country."They are trying to divide people. There will be bloodbath and civil war in the country," she was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.BJP president Amit Shah retorted by saying that the TMC chief is “dangerously trying to mislead” the people of the country."The threat of civil war has already once divided this country. What is she trying to say? Trinamool Congress should come forward and clear its stand," Shah said while addressing a press conference.Shah also asked the Congress and other opposition parties to clarify their stand on the issue of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in the country."All parties should clarify their stand— in a clear yes and no— on the issue of illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in the country," Shah said and added that the NRC list was released for the security of the country.Mamata later met Union home minister Rajnath Singh to discuss her concerns over the NRC list.In the meeting, Singh assured Banerjee that no one will be harassed and opportunities will be provided to them to prove their case."Nobody will be harassed in this entire process and at every stage of the process, adequate opportunity of being heard will be given to all persons. The draft NRC has been prepared in accordance with the law under the monitoring of the Supreme Court," Singh said."I asked him to amend NRC Bill or bring new bill. He has assured me they (govt) will not harass the people," the West Bengal chief minister said.Meanwhile, the Congress also questioned the “motives” behind releasing the draft NRC list.“On what empirical evidence has Amit Shah declared 40 lakh people as Bangladeshi infiltrators,” questioned Congress leader Manish Tewari.“Does PM Modi promise to send these people to Bangladesh? An absurd situation has been created. It will subvert Assam and disrupt entire northeast,” Tewari added.Former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh and BSP supremo Mayawati accused the BJP governments at the Centre and in states of playing a dangerous game of "narrow and divisive brand of politics" in the garb of implementing judiciary's directives.The dalit leader said it was very unfair to consider people who could not furnish proofs about their citizenship but were living in Assam for years to have their citizenship snatched away and chased out of the country."Most of these affected people are Bengali Muslims and linguistic minorities speaking Bangla but non-Muslims," she said.Mayawati warned of irreversible repercussions once the final draft of the NRC was published."Everyone knows how much respect you have for the courts since you blatantly violate many of its directives," she added.Former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi today termed the complete draft of the NRC as "defective" and claimed that most of the over 40 lakh people excluded in the list are Indian citizens.The Congress in Assam has never won polls on the votes of Bangladeshi people, Gogoi said, asserting both he and the present chief minister have won elections held on the basis of the same voters' list.The senior Congress leader admitted that illegal Bangladeshi people are residing in Assam, but said their number is much less than the 40 lakh figure mentioned in the complete draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC)."This is not a foolproof NRC. It has leakages. It is defective. Most of these 40 lakh people are Indian citizens," he said a day after release of the document that excluded over 40 lakh applicants."The government should provide legal aid to these excluded people. From the Congress party, we are going to help them in every possible way. It is not correct to consider these people as foreigners," Gogoi said.AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi said that the NRC list, in accordance with the Assam Accord, should be implemented irrespective of religion."Protecting Hindu Bangladeshis by BJP is also against the soul of Accord (Citizenship Amendment Bill)," he said.The AIMIM president also asked the Supreme Court to take cognizance of political leaders' statements claiming that the 40 lakh people not part of the second and final draft are "not citizens of India"."If any politician or “Shah” says 40 lakh people left out of DRAFT NRC r illegal immigrants then Supreme Court should take cognisance of these weird statements as it is a Contempt Of Court, what about BJP MLA Rama Kanta Dewri is he illegal as his name was excluded from Draft NRC," he tweeted.Earlier today, BJP MLA from Telangana T Raja Singh Lodh flared the controversy with his remark suggesting that “illegal Bangladeshi settlers and Rohingya should be shot if they do not return to their countries like gentlemen”."If these people, illegal Bangladeshis and Rohingya, don't go back with 'sharafat' (like gentlemen) then there is a need to make them understand in their own language. They should be shot. Only then India will be safe," the legislator from Goshamahal in Hyderabad said in a video message on a social networking site.He said such illegal settlers were "shot and driven out" from some other countries.