New Delhi: At least three petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court seeking a stay on the notification of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).
The arguments in the petitions, filed a day after the law was notified by the Narendra Modi government and just days before the general elections are to be announced, range from the Act being ‘unconstitutional’ as it is based on religion, to violating the core clause of the Assam Accord of 1985.
In a petition filed at the apex court on March 12, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) argued that it was for the first time religion has been introduced as a reference point or a condition for granting Indian citizenship.
IUML, which is the lead petitioner in the ongoing case against the validity of the Act i, the apex court, sought from SC a stay on the continued operation of the legislation and rules which would result into valuable rights being created and citizenship being granted to persons belonging to certain religions only, thereby resulting into a fait accompli situation.
In another petition filed at the SC on March 12, Debabrat Saikia, Assam Congress MLA and the leader of the Opposition at the state assembly argued that the rules set by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) “introduced classification based on religion and country,” which, “fails the manifest arbitrariness test established in the case of Shayara Bano vs Union of India (2017) 9 SCC 1.”
Saikia also stated that such a classification is “discriminatory and goes against Article 14 of the Constitution, which ensures equality for all individuals, regardless of their citizenship status.”
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The senior Congress leader underlined inconsistencies in the treatment of persecuted religious minorities from various countries, specifically highlighting the exclusion of persecuted groups such as the Sri Lankan Eelam Tamils.
“He further emphasised the violation of the Assam Accord of 1985, which required the expulsion of foreigners who came to Assam after March 25, 1971,” a report in The Sentinel said, adding that the opposition leader “argued that providing citizenship to illegal who are non-Muslims contradicts the Accord and weakens the socio-economic fabric of the state.”
In another petition at the SC, the All Assam Students Union (AASU) which had spearheaded the anti-foreigner agitation in Assam in the 1980s, stated to the court that “the notification of the Rules on 11.3.2024 stands in stark contradiction to the Assam Accord and Section 6A of the Citizenship Act 1955.”
“AASU argues that these rules legitimise illegal migrants, adversely impacting indigenous culture and violating constitutional provisions.”
The court is yet to set a date to hear this bunch of petitions seeking a stay on the notification of the Act.
Protest march
Meanwhile, AASU organised a torchlight rally on the streets of Guwahati on March 12 in protest against the Act.
Protest march organised by AASU. Photo: X/@SamujjalBhatta
Local news reports said that protesters burnt effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah at several locations. “In a reminder of the 2019 protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, demonstrators have once again chanted slogans like ‘CAA Aami Namanu’ (We will not accept the CAA) and ‘Joi Aai Asom’ (Victory to Mother Assam), along with other anti-government slogans to express their discontent, “ said The Sentinel.
The report said, “The AASU led the protest with support from 30 ethnic organisations and other student bodies, including the Asom Jatiya Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP).”
