The Bay WaveThe government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced the implementation of rules for the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) of 2019, which notably excludes Muslims. This decision comes just weeks before the Hindu nationalist leader seeks a third term in office.
The Citizenship Amendment Act offers expedited naturalization to Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and Christians who fled to predominantly Hindu India from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan before December 31, 2014. However, Muslims, who form the majority population in all three countries, are not included in the law.
Although passed by the Indian Parliament in 2019, the implementation of the law was delayed by Modi’s government following violent protests in the capital, New Delhi, and other areas, where scores lost their lives in clashes.
The nationwide protests in 2019 attracted people from diverse religious backgrounds who voiced concerns that the law undermines India’s secular foundation. Many Muslims feared that the combination of the CAA with a proposed national register of citizens could lead to their marginalization.
The National Register of Citizens, part of the government’s efforts to identify and remove individuals deemed to have entered India illegally, has so far only been implemented in the northeastern state of Assam. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has pledged to extend a similar citizenship verification program nationwide.
The government defends the CAA as a humanitarian measure, asserting that it aims to grant citizenship to religious minorities fleeing persecution and would not be used against Indian citizens.
Home Minister Amit Shah, in a statement on social media, stated, “These rules will now enable minorities persecuted on religious grounds in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan to acquire citizenship in our nation.”
India’s main opposition party, the Congress, has raised questions about the timing of the announcement, suggesting it is intended to polarize elections.
Human rights organization Amnesty India has criticized the law as discriminatory, stating that it contradicts principles of equality and international human rights law. They argue that the law legitimizes religious-based discrimination and is exclusionary.
India, with a population of over 1.4 billion people, is home to approximately 200 million Muslims, who constitute a significant minority group. Since Modi took office in 2014, they have faced numerous attacks across the country.
Critics accuse Modi of remaining silent on anti-Muslim violence, which has emboldened some of his most fervent supporters and fueled hate speech against Muslims.
Modi has increasingly intertwined religion with politics, a strategy that resonates with India’s Hindu majority. Earlier this year, he inaugurated a Hindu temple at the site of a demolished mosque in the northern city of Ayodhya, fulfilling a longstanding pledge of his party’s Hindu nationalist agenda.
Most opinion polls suggest that Modi’s party will secure a majority in the upcoming general election scheduled to be held by May.
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