JALANDHAR: Shiromani Akali Dal, the oldest ally of

after Shiv Sena severed ties with the Modi government, has declared it is completely against the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and has advocated a meeting of NDA partners to discuss situation in the wake of country-wide protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

The party had till now taken a pro-BJP stance on CAA even as its president and Lok Sabha MP from Ferozepur Sukhbir Badal kept reiterating in public fora that Muslims should be included in it. However, the party did not put any pressure on its ally to make changes in the newly-passed law. Neither Badal, nor the party have till now said anything on the NRC till now.

In a strong statement calling for shelving of NRC, Akali Dal Rajya Sabha member Naresh Gujral said Muslims should be included in the CAA and the Modi government should focus more on economy to create more jobs for the youth. "We are completely against the NRC and this idea should be shelved," Gujral told TOI on Wednesday. "In view of wide prevailing apprehensions about NRC in the minority community - Muslims - even as the Prime Minster has made a statement, the air should be further cleared through a categorical statement that there will not be a countrywide NRC," he added.

"We are opposed to NRC as it has created insecurity among Muslims, which is not good for the country. The good thing is that Muslims are not feeling alone as scores of members of other communities have come forward unlike 1980s, when Sikhs felt completely isolated due to the divisive and anti-Sikh agenda of the Congress. Though there were some saner voices which spoke up for them and stood by them when thousands were butchered in streets of Delhi, largely they were isolated. However, now things appear different for Muslims and that is heartening and consoling," said Gujral and added that the then Congress government had even refused to listen to people and his father former Prime Minister I K Gujral.

"Now, educated youth are making a major difference and they are at the forefront and that has also send a positive message not only among Muslims but across communities," he said.

"There are four pillars - democracy, secularism, diversity and federalism - on which this edifice is resting and if one gets damaged the entire structure can come crashing down," Gujral warned.

However, when asked that why had Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) not come out openly on the issue, Gujral held that

SAD

was consistent on its position and there was no shift in its policy or position.

"SAD president

while speaking on CAB in the Lok Sabha had advocated that Muslims should also be included in the CAA and we are holding on that position and now I am reiterating it. We voted for the bill as we have been championing the cause of Sikhs who had migrated to India due to persecution in Afghanistan and Pakistan. We are going by values of universal humanism given by the Sikh gurus and want Muslims also included in the CAA and this will also dispel the fear and apprehensions," he argued.

The SAD MP talked of the "Vajpayee touch" and urged the BJP leadership to follow in the footsteps of late PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee. "I've said it time and again... we need that Vajpayee touch. Vajpayeeji ran a coalition with almost 20 parties. Yet, everybody remained happy because everybody was given respect, they were treated with equality. Vajpayeeji's doors were always open," Gujral said, adding that the only BJP leader who had learned those lessons was Arun Jaitley who passed away earlier this year. "As long as he (Jaitley) was there, I would say channels always remained open... we always had a go-to person. Unfortunately, after his demise, these channels are really not working," he said.