The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) was passed by the Parliament of India on 11 December 2019. It amended the Citizenship Act, 1955 by providing an accelerated pathway to Indian citizenship for persecuted religious minorities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who arrived in India by 2014. The eligible minorities were stated as Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis or Christians.The law does not grant such eligibility to Muslims from these countries.
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| Indian Muslim Protest against CAA |
"The Citizen Amendment Act is a bigoted law that legitimizes discrimination on the basis of religion and should never have been enacted in the first place ...", said Aakar Patel, chair of the board at Amnesty International India.
Really? I suggest Mr. Aakar Patel reads the constitution of Pakistan which clearly states that the Constitution requires the president to be a "Muslim of not less than forty five (45) years of age". So a non-Muslim can never be the President of Pakistan. Compared to that, the Republic of India has had four Muslim Presidents since its independence:
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| Muslim Presidents of India |
- Zakir Husain (1967–1969)
- M. Hidayatullah (Acting 1969)
- Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (1974-1977)
- APJ Abdul Kalam (2002-2007)
Misinformation on Muslim Citizens of India
Just like Mr. Aakar Patel, a number of politicians, human rights activists, and minority spokesmen have castigated this amendment as "Anti-Muslim". The fact however in contrary to this. I will try to elaborate on this on three key points:
- Amendment DOES NOT impact the citizenship rights of Indian Muslims
The text of the amendment has no reference to impact the civil rights and citizenship of Indian citizens belonging to Muslim religion. In fact, On 16 December, after the protests entered the fifth day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed for calm in a series of tweets saying "No Indian has anything to worry regarding this act. This act is only for those who have faced years of persecution outside and have no other place to go except India".
Indian Muslim Women - Amendment was made to accommodate Sikh and Hindu Refugees
Ever since the formation of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Muslim citizens of Pakistan enjoy privileged status while the minorities - Sikhs, Hindus, Christians, and others have limited civil rights.
These minorities are persecuted, harassed, and pushed down the economic and social status. The same can be said about these minorities in Afghanistan and Bangladesh. Over time, numerous Gurdwaras and temples have been attacked, Sikh businessmen kidnapped for ransom, murdered, and Hindu and Sikh girls forcibly converted and married off to Muslim men in Pakistan.
Massacre of Sikhs in Afghanstan
With no constitutional support, many of these minorities are turning to India for security and hope. They seek refugee status upon arrival in India. India is home to some 9,200 Afghan refugee families, among them thousands of Hindus and Sikhs who call the country their ancestral homeland. Chief Khalsa Diwan pays the fees of 680 Afghan refugee students in 28 local schools in West Delhi.
Afghan Sikh Refugees Arrive in India 
Afghani Sikh Refugee in Delhi
"I often dream that I'm still in Jalalabad," said Singh, now a father of four daughters and a son. "But the situation is very bad, women can't even go out. How can we return?". These hardworking and proud people do not want to live off UN pension or on refugee aids. They want to work, run businesses, and regain the prosperity they once enjoyed in Afghanistan. That was not possible as they would need to be citizens of India to apply for jobs and run businesses. The Indian government had agreed that after 12 years of residency - the standard under the citizenship law - Afghan Hindu and Sikh refugees can apply for Indian citizenship. But they will have to wait for twelve years before they could apply.
Afghani Sikhs support CAA
Thankfully, there's a solution in sight. The Citizen's Amendment Act of 2019 introduced by the Modi government accelerates the process for these refugees. It states that religious minorities such as Hindus and Sikhs that are persecuted in neighboring Muslim-majority countries, and promised to fast track a path to citizenship for non-Muslim refugees.
Link: United Nations Refugee Agency: Afghan Minorities 
PM Modi with Afghan Sikhs after CAA - Why not include Muslims from Pakistan and Bangladesh in the amendment?
The eligible minorities in the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 includes Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis or Christians. The law does not grant such eligibility to Muslims from these countries. Why not?
Allow me to explain why in a few words. The presumption upon which these nations were carved out of India was to provide a safe heaven for Muslims of unified India. The constitutions and laws of these countries are biased in favor of Muslims and prejudice against non-Muslim minorities who do not enjoy the same rights to practice their religious traditions. Their women are forced to wear 'Hijab', the men are kidnapped for ransom, or shot, their businesses targeted, and they are not able to cremate their dead as customary in Hindu and Sikh traditions. In certain regions, these minorities have to wear certain colors to identify themselves as non-Muslims and their home marked to indicate their religious identity.
Indian Muslim Women demonstrating democratic freedom in India
Contrary to this, the Muslims in India enjoy the same rights as people of other religions, They are free to practice their religion, and enjoy equal civil rights. This amendment does nothing to change that freedom. Its mainly authored to extend the citizenship to the refugees of minority communities from the neighboring countries who face religious discrimination and potential genocide.
There can be an argument to extend the benefits of CAA to Muslims who face discrimination in their homeland, such as, minority Muslim groups such as Shias and Ahmadias, and LGBT community. This however will be more difficult to identify genuine cases of discrimination, and may pose risks to national security.
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