Citizenship Amendment Act: Navigating Controversy, Legal Debates, and Societal Impacts in India

13-08-2024

Abstract

The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has sparked significant controversy in India since its enactment in 2019. The law aims to provide expedited citizenship to non-Muslim refugees from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan who entered India before 2014. However, the exclusion of Muslims from the CAA's provisions has led to widespread protests and legal challenges, with critics arguing it violates India's secular constitution and international human rights norms. While The Citizenship Amendment Rules (2024) have been notified to enact the CAA in the country, it continues to have a divided public opinion and raise concerns about its implications for India's diverse society and democratic fabric. This paper examines the key debates surrounding the CAA, its legal status, societal impact, and prospects for reform to align it with India's founding principles of equality and secularism

Introduction

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, led by the Bhartiya Janta Party, recently notified the rules for enactment of The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), enacted in December 2019, just before the 2024 General Elections. The CAA amends India's Citizenship Act of 1955 to offer a path to citizenship for undocumented migrants from specific religious minorities. These include Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians from the three Islam-majority countries, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. The CAA reduces the residency requirement for these groups from 11 to 5 years, aiming to aid those fleeing religious persecution. Additionally, it also excludes the mandatory one-year residency immediately preceding the application for citizenship (Guha, 2024). The government can now provide Indian nationality to the persecuted people from these countries who came to the country up until December 2014. (Singh, 2024). Bhat (2019) writes that the CAA seeks to make two major alterations, especially for non-Muslim migrants from the three above-mentioned countries: it eliminates the possibility of their and their descendants’ disqualification from acquiring citizenship and quickens the process of receiving citizenship for them.

However, the Act does not include Muslims, prompting nationwide protests questioning the act's fairness and secular principles in 2019. Critics argue it undermines India's secular fabric and constitutional ethos of equality. The CAA's implementation sparks debate crucial to India's democratic integrity and citizenship laws' future. In response to all the critics, the government has come forward to explain that Muslims cannot be considered minorities in all the above-said countries (Kumar, 2024). Additionally, they have also responded back by saying that applications from other backgrounds will also be taken into consideration and reviewed depending on case to case. Lastly, they have also informed that while a large population believes that the Act will take away the citizenship of Muslims already residing in the country, the reality is extremely different, as the Act is only about providing citizenship to the persecuted minority groups and has no provision for taking anyone’s citizenship. (Ara, 2024)

The opposition parties, including the Congress have already put in the public that they consider this step as discriminatory. Additionally, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has already said that the state would not be following the rules of the CAA as it stands against the practice of communal harmony in the state. AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi also said in opposition to the implementation of the Act and warned that there could be a repeat of the 2019 protests, which claimed about 100 lives. Owaisi also mentioned that CAA will create a divide in society and will reduce Muslims to second-class citizens in the country.

According to the annual report of the Ministry of Home Affairs, 1414 minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan have been given Indian Citizenship by registration of naturalisation through the Citizenship Act of 1955.

Controversies and Legal Debates

The CAA has sparked significant controversy due to its perceived inclusivity of non-Muslim refugees while excluding Muslim applicants. The Supreme Court of India has been overburdened with petitions challenging the legality of the CAA, creating a complex landscape of legal battles. Public protests, notably the Shaheen Bagh demonstration, had captured national attention, highlighting the intense public dissent and societal divisions the law provoked in 2019. Opponents of the Act believe that it is just one of the many steps to create a Hindu-majoritarian state. A report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) has mentioned that the implementation of the CAA is an anti-Muslim agenda, and it contravenes the “international human rights norms and obligations.”

Critics argue that the Act discriminates based on religion, violating Articles 14 (Right to Equality) (Bhat, 2019) and 21 (Right to Life and Personal Liberty) of the Indian Constitution. Bhat (2019) mentions that the implementation of CAA will place some specific Indian residents at a disadvantage due to their religious identity as well as their country of origin. Additionally, he also points out that CAA will enable non-Muslim illegal migrants to apply for citizenship. However, the Muslim residents will be barred from the same.

Additionally, Supreme Court lawyers like Anas Tanvir pointed out that the CAA is unconstitutional in its very essence and clearly goes against Article 15 of the Constitution. Article 15 talks about prohibiting discrimination based on religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth. However, lawyers like J Sai Deepak, in contrast to Tanvir, mentioned that it is the obligation of the Indian government, irrespective of who is in the centre towards the minority groups in Pakistan.

In one of his articles, J Sai Deepak writes that CAA is a specific amendment limited to benefits for addressing a particular issue for people having common civilizational characteristics. According to him, this step taken by the government is in no way a step towards changing the main fundamental nature of the Citizenship Act. Additionally, he also mentioned that CAA is only one of the methods of speeding the process of granting citizenship to specific communities and does not bestow citizenship on its beneficiaries. (Deepak, 2020)

Implications for Indian Society

The enactment of the CAA has had significant implications for India's multifaceted society. It has left religious minorities feeling marginalized, worsening communal tensions and fostering socio-political polarization. The Act's criteria for citizenship have forced many to reconsider their identity, destabilizing a long-held sense of belonging. The law has indirectly sown seeds of mistrust among various communities, raising concerns about national unity and the future fabric of Indian society. Even during the enactment of the Act in 2019, CAA attracted country-wide protests, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people. Delhi became the centre of the protests, as the significant sit-in protest at Shaheen Bagh blocked major roads in the capital.

The MHA has already announced in public that the CAA consists of no such provision which will harm the rights of the Muslims living in the country. They will continue to enjoy all the rights as their Hindu counterparts. Additionally, no Indian citizen is expected to reveal any documents to prove their citizenship.

Comparative Analysis with Other Democracies

Internationally, several democracies like the United States and Canada have adopted selective immigration policies that favour certain groups. However, the explicit exclusion based on religion, as seen in the CAA, has garnered widespread criticism. Global watchdogs and international communities have voiced concerns, viewing the law as a departure from democratic principles and human rights norms. Comparatively, India must weigh these global perspectives to avoid being seen as deviating from its foundational secular ethos.

Future Prospects and Reforms

Addressing the CAA's contentious aspects requires thoughtful amendments to ensure inclusivity and uphold constitutional values. Civil society, activists, and human rights organizations play a crucial role in advocating for change and monitoring the law's long-term impacts. Ultimately, fostering dialogues between different communities and the government could pave the way for reforms that align the CAA with India’s democratic values, ensuring it strengthens rather than divides the nation.

The Union government and various other experts believe that the CAA will enable the removal of legal barriers to rehabilitation and citizenship and would allow thousands of people to live dignified and respectable lives. Additionally, the citizenship rights will also allow for protection of the social identity, linguistic and cultural fabric of the people. (Amnesty International, 2024)
Lastly, CAA could be the last support for many persecuted people who believe that there is no other place for them in this world that would accept them and provide them shelter.