Protests and vandalism have circled India ever since the citizenship legislation bill was passed in the assembly. Muslims fear of losing their nationality while Hindus fear losing identity have found solidarity within the crisis and erupted the streets of nearly whole of India to mark their stance against the discriminative, fascist political agendas of Modi’s government.
The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 seeks to grant citizenship to non-Muslim minorities from neighboring countries. Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Christians from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh can acquire Indian citizenship as per the new law, which blocks naturalization for Muslims.The law with its attributes similar to that of US President Donald Trump’s Muslim ban – goes against the spirit of India’s secular constitution. Rights groups and a Muslim political party have challenged the law in Supreme Court.
In the northeastern parts of India, the protests are mainly against allowing any “foreign migrant” from Bangladesh – irrespective of religion – to settle in the region.
The nationwide protests fueled after the Delhi police stormed the Jamia Milia University, resulting in over 100 students being injured and dozens arrested to prevent the protests against the contentious law. Since the attack, solidarity protests have also been held across the South Asian country.
Police have carried out patrolling in New Delhi’s Seelampur area after a protest held in the area over the citizenship law turned violent on Tuesday.Delhi Police have imposed Section 144 of India’s Code of Criminal Procedure in the capital’s North East District. The section prohibits assembly of more than five people.
It has been a week of severe demonstrations across India over a controversial “anti-Muslim” citizenship law, which critics say violates the country’s secular constitution. Demonstrators in Ahmedabad, Gujarat protest against citizenship law and in solidarity with Jamia Millia Islamia university students. In Muslim-populated areas of Delhi, buses and a police outpost were torched and tear gas filled streets as thousands of protesters hurled stones at police in Seelampur district. Police said 21 people, including 12 policemen, were injured in the clashes. Thousands more rallied in Kolkata and Tamil Nadu states.
Assam remained the centre of the demonstrations where four people died after being shot by police. The internet and cable services have been banned for the general public ever since the protests fueled in the region.
Protests have erupted in New Delhi bringing in clashes between thousands of protesters and police, the latest violence in a week of opposition to the citizenship law.Police fired tear gas in the New Seelampur part of the capital to push back protesters swarming to barricades and throwing stones. At least two police were injured. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has said it has closed at least four metro stations in the Indian capital following protests against the citizenship law. The stations were re-opened after about two hours.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee led thousands of protesters in the eastern city of Kolkata in West Bengal to express their anger towards the recent atrocities being carried out across the nation. New protests also broke out in the southernmost state of Kerala, while several rallies were planned in the capital New Delhi, according to news agencies.
Rights group Amnesty International India has condemned the brutality of Delhi police on students and has urged India’s federal and state governments to “respect the right to dissent” by the students and investigate allegations of police brutality against them.
Amnesty have acclaimed that more than 100 protesters in the AMU were also beaten with reports emerging of police preventing ambulances to pass through the barricades in order to aid the wounded students from the university.
