CAB sets off protests, fear and uncertainty among Muslims in South

The opposition to the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) is gathering momentum. The ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and its ally All India Majlis Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) in Telangana have thrown their weight behind the legal challenge mounted by the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) which moved the Supreme Court on Thursday (December 12), saying the legislation violated the fundamental values of the Constitution.

Both TRS and AIMIM had voted against the Bill in the Parliament. “We are opposing the Bill because it is anti-Muslim. This legislation has to be read along with the NRC (National Register of Citizens). It is aimed at marginalising the Muslims. We stand by those who are challenging it in the court,” the TRS Parliamentary Party leader K Keshava Rao said.

“This Bill privileges foreigners over Indians solely because they are non-Muslim. It makes religion as the basis for granting Indian citizenship and specifically excludes Muslims and it must be read through the prism of NRC,” the AIMIM president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi said.

However, the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh has not witnessed any protests against the CAB as both the ruling YSR Congress Party and the opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supported the legislation and voted in its favour in the Parliament.

Also read: Citizenship Bill: BJP paying the price of ignoring Assam’s history

Fear and uncertainty

Ever since the announcement about the nationwide NRC, fear and uncertainty have gripped Muslim community in Telangana, which forms 13% of the state’s population. Though the CAB is ostensibly meant for non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, there is a growing fear that Muslims might be targeted and harassed once the NRC exercise begins.

As a result, there is an unusual rush to obtain birth certificates, particularly for those born before 1971. “People are now rushing to agents dealing with local municipalities and districts for birth certificates. Many of the older generation people don’t have birth certificates. They now fear they may be targeted for not having the crucial document,” said Mujitabha Askari of the ‘Helping Hands Foundation’, a city-based NGO.

“I am getting many calls from people asking for procedure to get birth certificates. They are willing to pay the agents, lawyers and government officials to obtain the document. The process is cumbersome and requires time and money. It is also emotionally draining for many,” the activist said.

Karnataka Waqf Board seeks records

The Karnataka State Waqf Board has asked the mosques to create registers of local Muslim families. It has sought the community members to keep all the government records (PAN card, Aadhaar, Ration card, Voter ID, Passport, Birth Certificates) in order and seek help from the Board or at the Jamia Masjid which are entrusted to help the community members in case someone do not have documents.

The Waqf Board issued a circular a month ago when the debate on citizenship bill heated up and stated that there is a long way to go to see that all Muslims have documents to prove domicile. The BJP workers and leaders rejoiced the passage of the CAB while Congress party leaders and JD(S) members strongly opposed it and called its members to participate in Bharat Bachao Rally being organised in Delhi on Friday, 14 December. Lawyers and citizens activists in Bengaluru have called for a separate peaceful protest against the Centre’s move on Friday.

Also read: Deconstruction of India through Citizenship (Amendment) Bill

IUML petition

In its petition before the apex court, the IUML contended that the CAB should be struck down for violation of the fundamental right to equality under Article 14. “Article 14 of the Indian Constitution envisages that all should be treated equally alike. If the objective of the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 is to protect the ‘minorities who faced religious persecution in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh’, then the Ahmaddiyya and Shia sect among these countries are entitled to equal treatment for the benefit of the law.

It is well-documented that the sect discrimination within religion exists in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Therefore, the extension of benefit of the Act to the religious minority such as Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, but denying the same to Ahmaddiyya and Shia sect within these countries is unable to satisfy the objective sought to be achieved,” the petition, filed by advocates Haris Beeran and Pallavi Pratap, said.

The petitioners said that were aggrieved by grant of citizenship to one section of illegal immigrants by making an exclusion on the basis of religion. “Illegal migrants are class by itself and, therefore, any law which is applicable to them should be irrespective of any religion, caste or nationality basis,” they said. The petitioners include prominent IUML leaders and MPs such as P K Kunhalikutty, E T Mohammed Basheer, Abdul Wahab and K Navas Kani.

Also read: Bangladesh minister cancels India visit over situation following CAB passage

“The Preamble of our Constitution envisages that India is a secular country and therefore every law which is passed by the Parliament has to be religion neutral. No law can be passed by the Parliament if the basis of such a law is religion. That strikes at the root of the concept of secularism which is the basic structure of the Constitution. The present Amendment Act excludes a particular community/ religion. This is not only unreasonable but against the principles enunciated under Article 14 of the Constitution,” the petition said.

“This religious segregation, without any reasonable differentiation, not only violates Article 14, but is also blatantly opposed to the very basic structure of the Constitution and to the very idea of India as a country which treats people of all faiths equally,” the plea said.

The citizenship law did not explain as to why migrants from other neighbouring countries such as Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Nepal had not been included. “Sri Lanka has had a history of persecution of Tamil minorities. Similarly, India shares approximately1,600-km-long border with Myanmar where Rohingya Muslims became the targets of persecution. Over the years, there have been reports of both Tamil minorities and Rohingya Muslims fleeing persecution from their respective countries and seeking refuge in India,” the petition said.

No more empathy for Muslims

Speaking to The Federal, Ramanathapuram IUML MP Navas Kani has said that the Tamil Nadu government in the past had always shown empathy towards Muslims in the state. “But, the concern for Muslims has ended with the demise of former chief minister J Jayalalithaa. The present AIADMK headed by OPS and EPS is only interested in safeguarding its government.

Already, Muslim community is being looked down upon with suspicion. Now, after the passage of CAB, it will intensify,” he said. Tamil Nadu had seen a wave of migration from Sri Lanka in the past. There has also been flow of migrants, though much smaller in number, from Bangladesh in search of work. They are largely concentrated in the industrial regions like Coimbatore, Tirupur and Namakkal.

In the last two years, About 50 illegal Bangladeshi immigrants have been arrested. Some of them were also found to have obtained Aadhaar cards, ration cards and Indian passports. The Sri Lankan migrants are recognised as refugees and they are kept in camps across the state. There are about 132 camps sheltering around 1.2 lakh refugees. Recently, a group consisting of 65 members of Sri Lankan Refugees sought the help of Madras High Court to provide Indian citizenship for them. But the court dismissed their plea.

As many as 94 Rohingya Muslims have been given refugee status and put up in a camp at Kelambakkam, Chennai. These refugees are given Aadhaar cards and ration cards. However, as of now, none of the Bangladeshi migrants have been registered as refugees.