Panaji: Goa government on Friday clarified that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will have no impact on the people who ave opted for Portuguese passport from the state.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant talking to reporters said that “some elements were trying to misguide people claiming that the Portuguese passport holders will be in problem due to CAA, which is absolutely wrong.”
“Goans who are in Portugal or having Portuguese passport would not be affected due to CAA,” he said adding that “some elements were spreading unnecessary panic amongst the citizens on the issue.”
Sawant said that many of Goan Christian community brethrens were holding Portuguese passport, but they will not be affected due to the CAA.
“Goans need not be worried about CAA, irrespective of caste and creed. I have studied the matter. Some Goans who have taken Portuguese passport and wants to return to Indian citizenship can do so by following the proper procedure, as they have been doing in the past,” he said.
Sawant said that “CAA is nothing related to Goa or those who have settled abroad.”
Congress party in the past had expressed apprehensions that the implementation of CAA will adversely impact the Portuguese passport holders from the coastal state.
