Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Mar 12: The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) on Tuesday moved the Supreme Court seeking a stay of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019 and its rules notified by the government on March 11, even as the All India Muslim Jamaat president Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi Bareilvi supported the legislation saying all Muslims in India should welcome it as it would not impact their citizenship status.
The IUML highlighted how the Centre averted a push for a stay of the implementation of the controversial CAA in the Supreme Court nearly five years ago arguing that the rules under the act had not been framed. Now, after four-and-half years of ominous quiet, the IUML, whose petition leads the 250 ones challenging the CAA, said the government had suddenly notified the rules even as the case remained pending in the Supreme Court.
Maulana Bareilvi in Bareily said he welcomed the legislation, and tried to allay fears among the Muslim community, saying that it wouldn’t impact their citizenship status. “The Govt of India has implemented the CAA law. I welcome this law. This should have been done much earlier but better late than never… There are a lot of misunderstandings among the Muslims regarding this law. This law has nothing to do with Muslims. Earlier there was no law to provide citizenship to the non-Muslims coming from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who faced atrocities based on religion…,” said the Maulana, speaking to reporters.
The IUML, represented by advocates Haris Beeran and Pallavi Pratap, said, “The petitioner had pressed for a stay of the Act. However, the Union of India had told the Supreme Court that the rules have not been framed and therefore the implementation will not take place. The writ petitions have been pending for 4.5 years.” The rules notified on March 11 would now govern the actual implementation of the CAA at the ground level.
The rules facilitate a “highly truncated and fast-tracked process for grant of citizenship to illegal migrants” belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, Christian communities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan who enter into India on or before December 31, 2014.
The rules have done away with the independent and tiered scrutiny of applications of citizenship by District Collectors on the ground, and recommendations of State governments as to the wisdom of granting citizenship to the applicants have been done away with. The Citizenship Rules of 2009 had required the Centre to consult the State governments in the grant of citizenship process.
The IUML said the government ought to have waited for a final decision from the Supreme Court. “In case the Supreme Court finds CAA unconstitutional, then these people who would have got citizenship would be deprived of it, which would create an anomalous situation… It is best to defer the implementation of CAA and the rules,” the application said.
“These persons are already in India and they do not have any threat of being deported or expelled from India. There was no urgency,” the IUML said. It said it was not against giving citizenship to migrants, but the CAA discriminated on the ground of religion in the grant of citizenship.
“This is a legislation which is based on the exclusion of religion. It strikes at the concept of secularism, which is the basic structure of Constitution… Let the implementation of the Act be made religion-neutral,” the IUML said.
The application said the court should freeze the implementation of an Act and its rules which were “manifestly arbitrary and glaringly unconstitutional” despite the presumption of constitutionality attached to a statute.
In contrast, allaying the apprehension of the Muslims, Maulana Bareilvi said, “Crores of Indian Muslims will not be affected by this law at all… This law is not going to take away the citizenship of any Muslim… In the past years, it has been seen that there were protests, it was because of misunderstandings. Some political people created misunderstandings among the Muslims… Every Muslim of India should welcome the CAA…,” he added.
In February, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said in categorical terms that CAA was brought in to provide citizenship and not to take away anyone’s citizenship. “Minorities in our country, and specially our Muslim community, are being provoked. CAA cannot snatch away anyone’s citizenship because there is no provision in the Act. CAA is an act to provide citizenship to refugees who were persecuted in Bangladesh and Pakistan,” Mr Shah had said.
As per the Ministry of Home Affairs annual report for 2021-22, between April 1, 2021, and December 31, 2021, a cumulative count of 1,414 individuals from non-Muslim minority communities originating from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan were granted Indian citizenship through registration or naturalization under the Citizenship Act, 1955.
Under the Citizenship Act of 1955, Indian citizenship by registration or naturalization is granted to non-Muslim minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan in nine states such as Gujarat, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Maharashtra.
It’s notable that authorities in districts of Assam and West Bengal, both politically sensitive regions on this matter, have not been empowered with these citizenship-granting authorities thus far.
Among the Hindu migrants living in Rajasthan, the news has brought in a lot of cheers. “This is like real Ram Rajya for us,” said a Hindu migrant from Pakistan living in Jodhpur. In the settlements of Hindu migrants from Pakistan, the residents lit lamps and burst firecrackers on Monday night soon after the rules to fast-track citizenship for undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014, were unveiled.
“We had been waiting for this for long. With this (CAA) becoming a reality, many those in line for citizenship can hope to become Indian nationals soon,” said Dinesh Bheel, a Hindu migrant from Pakistan.
According to Seemant Lok Sangathan, which advocates for Pakistan migrants in India, around 35,000 migrants in Jodhpur have been waiting for citizenship. The influx of these Hindu migrants from Pakistan has increased in the past 10 years, it claimed.
Welcoming the implementation of CAA and the reduction in residency period from 10-12 years to 6 years, the president of the Seemant Lok Sangathan Hindu Singh Sodha said, “But the CAA talks about only those migrants who arrived in India before December 31, 2014, and those who came afterwards, will be eligible for citizenship as per the old law.”
“This condition is injustice for about 20,000 people who came to India after this date in the past 10 years,” he said. A large number of Hindu migrants from Pakistan reside in Rajasthan’s western districts such as Barmer, Bikaner and Jodhpur.
Hitting out at the Narendra Modi government over the implementation of the CAA, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of “trying to create unrest” and said Monday’s announcement was a “Ludo move.” Addressing an administrative meeting at Bengal’s Habra, the Trinamool chief alleged a conspiracy to “snatch away citizenship rights” and said she doubts the legality of the law. “There is no clarity. It is a misleading campaign,” she said.
“BJP leaders say CAA gives you rights. But the moment you apply for citizenship, you become illegal migrants and you will lose your rights. You will lose rights and be taken to detention camps. Please think before you apply,” she said.
For Trinamool, however, Monday’s announcement poses a bigger poll challenge. Implementation of CAA was a longstanding demand of Matuas, a Hindu scheduled caste group with roots in present-day Bangladesh. Most members of the community had entered Bengal after Partition or after Bangladesh was formed. The group is politically significant, and both the BJP and Trinamool have left no stone unturned to woo Matuas in the run-up to state and national elections. The BJP now hopes that yesterday’s announcement may tilt the scales in its favour. Following the announcement last evening, celebrations were held in areas dominated by the Matua community.
Local BJP MP and Union Minister Shantanu Thakur thanked the Prime Minister for fulfilling the dream of three generations of Matuas.”
A section of the community, which supports the Trinamool, was sceptical. Mamatabala Thakur, a former MP from the party, said the Centre’s announcement was aimed at getting votes. “What about the citizenship rights already granted to Matuas after 1947? Will the CAA force them to come up with identity proofs once again and throw them into an uncertain future?” she asked.
“Those who are being asked to apply, let me tell you…Once you apply you will be marked as refugees despite being citizens. Such people will become infiltrators once they apply. It is a game of taking away rights. If you apply, there is no guarantee whether you will get citizenship or not. You will lose your property. You will be deprived of government schemes. This is BJP’s plan before the polls. All civil rights will be taken away if you apply. Think a thousand times before applying for this. It is connected with the NRC,” she said.
Mamata said she would not allow CAA to be implemented in West Bengal. “I will not let them implement CAA. In my state, I will not let anyone snatch the basic rights of people. For that, if I am required to sacrifice my life, I will do that,” she said.
Saying that the Act has been formed to harass people, Mamata pointed out that the United Nations “has categorically stated that refugees should not be displaced and thrown out of a country”. “It is basic humanity. Have we ever seen that citizenship is being granted based on religion?” she said.
“They are asking for father’s birth certificate… Do you have your father’s birth certificate? I don’t have one. I don’t even know my parents’ birthdates…Those who are jumping out of happiness just go through the Act and find out how dangerous it is. It will mark you as refugees and then your properties, your house, your basic rights will be taken away…few may get citizenship but those who will not get it will be sent to a detention camp,” Mamata said.
In Chennai, the Tamil superstar Vijay called the CAA “unacceptable” and urged the Tamil Nadu government to not allow its implementation in the state. Vijay, who announced a new political party Tamizha Vetri Kazhagam last month, said in a press release that the CAA was being implemented due to “divisive politics.”
“A law like the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 is not acceptable in an environment where citizens of the country live with social harmony. The Tamil Nadu government must assure that they will not implement the law in the state,” he said.
