Kerala Cabinet Decides To Block NPR In State

The Kerala Cabinet led by chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan decided that the state would not implement the National Population Register (NPR). The Kerala government's stand is that there is no clarity on the exercise and the data collection process is ambiguous, according to media reports.

The Kerala government, therefore, seeks for these concerns to be addressed first. The state government had sent its representative to a meeting called by the Centre on the NPR in which all states barring West Bengal took part.

The Cabinet decision to block NPR comes weeks after the state assembly passed a resolution declaring the citizenship Amendment act as 'unconstitutional'. On December 31, 2019, the Kerala assembly had passed a resolution against the CAA.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has maintained that NPR is interlinked with National Register for Citizens (NRC) and has consistently spoken out against CAA, NRC and NPR.

Taking a cue from Kerala, the Punjab assembly also passed a resolution against the CAA. Other Congress ruled and non-BJP states are likely to follow suit, setting the stage for a major constitutional crisis on the issue.

Many opposition-ruled states have expressed their opposition to NPR as well.Kerala Cabinet,NPR,Pinarayi Vijayan