India implements the law of citizenship that is heavily criticized as it does not take into account Muslims, ranging from concern among minorities under Indian PM Modi, who represented the Hindu nationalist party.
The rules that were pronounced today created a religious test for migrants from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh—except Muslims. Detractors say
That this action will be taken to strengthen the idea of a new Hindu state, which the Modi government is attempting, and Muslims will be marginalized in India, which has 200 million of the population of this community.
This so-called Citizenship Amendment Act gives priority to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Christians, Parsis, and members of other religions who escaped from Bangladesh, Afghanistan or Pakistan and came to India before December 31, 2014, being an overwhelming Hindu country. On the other hand, the bill excludes Muslims from all the three states that majorly dominate them religion-wise.
It also broadens or alters other laws which were barring illegitimate migrants from getting Indian citizenship. It is the first time India, a secular state where there is spiritual diversity, has written religion as a criterion for the nativity.
The law seekers indicate that the implementation may lead to the elimination, deportation, or internment of Muslims due to the people with national register plans. In 2019, countrywide protests against the law became the rallying point for people coming from different faiths, at which they expressed doubts about the law being a basis for the destruction of the secular fibre of India. Muslims were concerned that the national card system, together with the register of citizens, could serve as a tool to single them out.
The opponents of the law that incorporate Muslims, non-Muslim parties, human rights activists and the like argue that it is not comprehensive and goes against secular principles in the constitution. They claim that citizenship should not result from any religious activity.
While the government claims that the bill is a humanitarian decision to safeguard religious minorities who suffer persecution in countries such as Pakistan and Myanmar, the critics ask why Muslim religious minorities suffering persecution in Pakistan and Myanmar are left out also.
India is home to 200 million Muslims, a significant minority within its population of over 1.4 billion people. Since Modi took office in 2014, Muslims have faced targeted attacks, including incidents of lynching over allegations of beef consumption or cow smuggling. Critics argue that Modi’s silence on anti-Muslim violence has emboldened extremists and fueled hate speech against Muslims.
The intertwining of religion and politics by Modi’s government has resonated with India’s Hindu majority, as seen in the recent inauguration of a Hindu temple at the site of a demolished mosque in Ayodhya city.
