New Delhi: The Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019, has come into effect, today, said a government gazette notification. This will bring solace to thousands of refugees who belong to minority community in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.
The gazette notification read, “In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of the section 1 of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (47 of 2019), the Central Government hereby appoints the 10th day of January, 2020, as the date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force.”
The Act was criticized by opposition parties and many communal forces inside the country. Protests were held across the country and anti-national elements spread violence in the name of protests. Dozens lost their lives and property worth crores were destroyed.
The opposition spread fear among the Indian Muslim community that the Act was against them. Instead of protecting the rights of minorities fleeing religious persecution, the opposition hand in gloves with communal forces tried to twist the narrative. Even after repeated assurance from the government that the CAA was not against any Indian Muslims, violent protests continued.
However, the protests began to fizzle out after the government and the BJP began countering the fake narrative peddled by the opposition. The bravery of the police in stifling violent protests also helped in clamping down the violence and bringing normalcy.
The Citizenship Amendment Act was passed by the Parliament last month and it grants Indian citizenship to those refugees from Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and Parsi communities fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who entered India on or before 31 December, 2014.
