Human Rights Watch says new law, nation­wide verifi­cation proces­s threat­en citize­nship rights of millio­ns of Muslim­sNEW DELHI: Human Rights Watch has termed India’s new citizenship law as discriminatory in a new report. The Citizenship Amendment Act along with a planned nationwide verification process to identify illegal immigrants is a threat to millions of Indian Muslims, said the report released on Thursday. The law which was approved last December accelerates citizenship for Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, and Christians from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, but blocks naturalisation for Muslims. Muslim leaders fear the new law will be linked to a nationwide exercise where every citizen would be asked to prove Indian citizenship. The 82-page report, Shoot the Traitors: Discrimination Against Muslims Under India’s New Citizenship Policy says the police and other officials have repeatedly failed to intervene when government supporters attacked those protesting the new citizenship policies.

Source: The Express Tribune April 11, 2020 08:37 UTC