Jamia Millia students protesting against CAA (File Photo)
The Centre on Monday issued a notification for the implementation of the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), marking a significant development just weeks before the 2024 Lok Sabha election. The CAA, a contentious legislation passed by Parliament in December 2019, grants Indian citizenship based on religion, sparking nationwide protests resulting in casualties and vehement opposition from civil society activists, opposition politicians, and non-BJP state governments.
With the issuance of this notification, the Indian government can now grant citizenship to non-Muslims from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan who arrived in India before December 31, 2014. A spokesperson for the Home Ministry announced that eligible individuals can submit citizenship applications through a dedicated web portal, streamlining the process with an entirely online mode. No additional documentation will be required from the applicants.
The implementation of the CAA was the highlight of the BJP”s campaign platform before the 2019 election, and its enforcement aligns with Home Minister Amit Shah”s recent assurance that the CAA will indeed be notified prior to the upcoming election. Addressing concerns, Shah emphasised that the CAA and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) would not be combined to target religious minorities.
Questioning the CAA’s implementation ahead of the national election, Congress said the timing suggests a calculated effort to politicise and polarise the electoral landscape, particularly in regions like West Bengal and Assam.
“It has taken four years and three months for the Modi Government to notify the rules for the Citizenship Amendment Act that was passed by the Parliament in December 2019. The Prime Minister claims that his Government works in a business-like and time-bound manner. The time taken to notify the rules for the CAA is yet another demonstration of the Prime Minister’s blatant lies. After seeking nine extensions for the notification of the rules, the timing right before the elections is evidently designed to polarise the elections, especially in West Bengal and Assam. It also appears to be an attempt to manage the headlines after the Supreme Court’s severe strictures on the Electoral Bonds Scandal” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh wrote on X.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, a vocal critic of the CAA, expressing her opposition said that her government is against any form of discrimination.
“If there is any discrimination, we won”t accept it. Be it religion, caste, or linguistic. They won”t be able to give citizenship to anyone in two days. This is just lollipop and show-off. After multiple extensions in four years, its implementation two to three days before the election announcement shows that it is being done for political reasons,” Banerjee said.
Accusing the BJP of exploiting the CAA issue for electoral gains, Banerjee reiterated her opposition, declaring her resolve to prevent its enforcement in Bengal. In the northeast, where anti-CAA protests previously led to violent clashes, the Assam Students Union has renewed calls for agitation.
Banerjee is not alone in her opposition to the CAA. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin joined her in condemning the law, accusing the BJP government of undermining communal harmony and asserting his refusal to implement it. Several other states, including Kerala and Punjab, as well as Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, previously under Congress rule and now governed by the BJP, have passed resolutions opposing the CAA. Bengal and Kerala have halted all NPR and NRC activities.
In Telangana, the former ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi, led by ex-Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, passed resolutions against the CAA, NRC, and NPR, urging the removal of any references to religion or foreign countries to allay widespread fears.
Even in states like Madhya Pradesh, governed by the Congress at the time, resolutions were passed against the CAA, with notable dissent from several BJP leaders and lawmakers.
The CAA seeks to provide citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis who came to India on or before December 31, 2014 from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. The law exempts the tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Tripura as included in Sixth Schedule of the Constitution including the tribal areas of Karbi Anglong in Assam, Garo Hills in Meghalaya, Chakma district in Mizoram, and Tribal areas district in Tripura.
Critics argue that while the government claims the CAA aims to grant citizenship to minorities facing religious persecution in Muslim-dominated countries, it effectively discriminates against Muslims and contradicts the secular principles enshrined in the Constitution.
