[Given the experience of the NRC process in Assam - resulting in exclusion
of a very large number of Hindus from the list of bonafide citizens out of
total 19 lakh excluded, the BJP had to go back to the drawing board.
It's now back with the CAA to assure the Hindus that, now, they are safe
and secure. To underline that the Muslims are the exclusive target.
But, while the Muslims, in any case, are *the* target, on a closer
scrutiny, the assurance to the Hindus, who'd inevitably become a collateral
victim, under the NRC process - mostly, like the rest, for want of
documents, appears to be more deceptive than real.
One has to keep in mind the following:
I. Even after the CAA - no longer CAB, the NRC process itself would remain
the same for everybody.
Each one will have to produce whatever listed documents.
*Hindus will NOT be exempted.*
II. Out of those *disqualified*, the followers of six specified religions -
including Hinduism and excluding Islam, will be eligible for grant of
Indian citizenship, on application, *provided they've come to India on or
before Dec. 31 2014 from either Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan,
because of religious persecution.*
That could prove really tricky.
How tricky, we don't know at the moment.
<<With the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution, internet
lockdown, blackout of all leaders in Kashmir, the Ayodhya - Babri Masjid
decision by the SC in favour of the Hindu Community, the nationwide NRC and
now the CAA - the Hindu Rashtra Project of the Sangh seems to be a reality
and not a far flung prophecy: it is here to stay.
Our country is passing through one of the most serious crises to its
existence as a secular, democratic republic. It is extremely vital that all
democratically minded citizens join hands to oppose the CAA. The PUCL will
work with other human rights groups, constitutionally minded and concerned
citizens to oppose the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 and the NRC,
scheduled to be rolled out throughout India. PUCL gives a call to all
concerned citizens to follow Gandhiji’s method of civil disobedience and to
resist the nationwide NRC process and the implementation of the CAA through
non-violent means and non-cooperation and urge the people of India to save
democracy and rule of law in the country.>>
(Excerpted from sl. no. II. below.)
<<The moral concern expressed over the suffering of a carefully defined
group of persecuted religious minorities in India’s amended Citizenship
Act, which seeks to naturalise non-Muslim undocumented migrants from
Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, shares worrying similarities with the
rhetoric and policies of the German state between 1929-1940.
The differential legal mechanisms in the law, which was signed by President
Ramnath Kovind on Thursday, for obtaining Indian citizenship discriminate
on the basis of religious identity and express the different moral worth of
Hindus and non-Hindus. The methods of enactment are different from the
German state in the 1930s, but the ideological work performed by the
rhetoric and policies of the German and Indian states share disturbing
continuities.>>
(Excerpted from sl. no. II. below.)]
I.
*13.12.2019*
*Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019: a Hate Driven Move*
*PUCL Call to Citizens to launch Non-Cooperation Movement against CAA & NRC*
PUCL deplores the promulgation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019
on 12th December, as a law which renders asunder the basic structure of
India’s constitutional scheme founded on the stated goals of secularism,
respect for diversity and peaceful coexistence of all communities, without
distinction of community, caste, creed or other differences. *The PUCL
declares that, collectively with others, it will work towards restoration
of universal principles of citizenship in India*.
The key thrust of the new Citizenship Act changes the essence of the
Constitution, altering the basic principles of universality of citizenship
which was obtained irrespective of race, sex, religion, and place of
birth. *Citizenship
now will have religion as a key determinant for obtaining Indian
Citizenship* since the CAB will now include all religions of the region
(Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism, Buddhism, Parsis and Christians) while very
conspicuously excluding Islam. While the CAB hides behind the veil of being
in favour of persecuted minorities of the three neighboring Muslim majority
countries, the pith and substances of the Amendment strips away the secular
value of the Constitution which "We, the people of India" had given to
ourselves.
It is a matter of supreme irony that while the rest of the world woke up to
10th December, 2019, celebrated globally as ‘International Human Rights
Day’, we in India woke up on 10th December to witness the virtual
desecration of the key human rights principles enshrined in the Indian
Constitution which values respecting diversity, ensuring equality amongst
all communities and promoting co-existence, secularism and communal
harmony. In the early hours of 10th December, 2019, the House of People
(Lok Sabha) voted in favour of differentiating and discriminating
persecuted people who seek refuge in India in terms of `*Muslims versus
other religions*’. The dark irony in the deliberate action of the NDA
government brazenly rushing through a discriminatory draconian law on human
rights day was not lost on the rest of the world, as numerous countries
condemned the passage of the communally oriented Citizenship Amendment
Bill.
The most odious aspect of the CAA is the communal, anti-Muslim bias inbuilt
into the law. Thus a law meant to protect people who face `*religiously
persecution*’ in countries neighbouring India and seeking refuge in our
country, provides that only persons belonging to `*minority*’ communities
like Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from the Muslim
majority countries of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan *will not be
treated as `illegal migrants’*. Though the terms `religious persecution’
and `minority community’ is not present in the CAA itself, it refers to the
Rules under the Foreigners Act, 2016 which clearly refer to these terms.
Even if religious persecution is the criteria, the flaws and contradictions
in this legal formulation stands exposed by the fact that there are
numerous communities within the larger Muslim community in Pakistan who
face immense `religious persecution’. The *Ahmadiya c*ommunity, the *Shia
Muslims* and the *Balochs* have historically been facing harsh persecution
with repeated bombings, mass killings and immense violence at the hands of
the dominant Sunni Muslim community in Pakistan. Similarly the
`*Hazara’ *community
in Afghanistan, also face religious persecution forcing them to seek exile
in other countries, including India. Religious persecution is not only
inter-religious; but as we can see the various Islamic sects with different
practices are also under immense violent persecution.
It is really sad as how the CAA has deliberately left out of the ambit of
the definition of `religiously persecuted minorities’ the tens of thousands
of *Rohingya* Muslim refugees who have been declared as the most persecuted
community of the world, facing ethnic cleansing and genocide from the
murderous Buddhist Myanmar military regime. All these cases are deserving
of grant of citizenship by a civilized country, for being victims of the
inhuman provisions of the religion patronised by their government.
Equally condemnable is that the CAA is silent on providing protection to
over hundred thousand Sri Lankan Tamil refugees who fled the 30 - year war
and ethnic cleansing in north Sri Lanka and who have been in India for
periods ranging from 10 to 30 years. Sri Lanka has recently seen a regime
change with Gotabaya Rajapakse, accused by the Tamils as the architect of
the genocidal war in 2008-09, as the new President of Sri Lanka. In these
circumstances it’s impossible for the Sri Lankan refugees in India to have
confidence to go back to Sri Lanka. The BJP government has mercilessly
dumped these Tamil refugees to the dustbin of history, a shameful
commentary on the international image of India as a country of peace.
It is well know that from the time of independence, India has offered
sanctuary to so many persecuted people from all around South Asia, from the
Dalai Lama and *Tibetans* who fled in 1959 when China invaded Tibet to
refugees from many other war torn nations from across Asia and Africa. We
have now lost the moral high ground in our very subcontinent.
It is ominously clear that the Modi – Shah led BJP Government is
determined on pushing through all means available in its political armoury,
its stated agenda of forcing India to become a *de facto* `Hindu Rashtra’
even though declaring it in law (*de jure*) may take some more time. Part
of the strategy to consolidate majority Hindu sentiment is by continuously
stoking the fire of communal difference, hatred and intolerance while
remaining strategically silent when violence engulfed India through
lynchings, mob killings and mass violence in the last few years.
CAA, accompanied by the *declaration of forcing the National Register of
Citizens* ( NRC ) on the whole country is the lethal project of
subordinating Muslims to virtually become second class citizens in their
own country.
What the CAA and nationwide NRC will accomplish is much more sinister: it
will unleash insecurity amongst Muslims throughout India in a scale
hitherto not experienced. The NRC Assam process has demonstrated that over
19 lakh citizens got left out from the NRC with more than 12 lakh Hindus
and Indigenous people failing to prove their Indian citizenship. In the
whole country these numbers could swell to an unimaginable high figure.
Even in Assam the, 12 lakh Hindus and Indigenous people cannot be made
stateless. The Citizenship Amendment Act is aimed at meeting that
contingency by giving citizenship to Hindus, Sikh, Buddhists, Jains,
Christians, and Parsis i.e. to all except the Muslims. Thus, the CAA serves
several of their purposes: it grants citizenship to all "illegal
immigrants" except Muslims by excluding and creating a second, subordinated
class of citizens. Who will then have restricted rights, apart from being
in detention centres.
With the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution, internet lockdown,
blackout of all leaders in Kashmir, the Ayodhya - Babri Masjid decision by
the SC in favour of the Hindu Community, the nationwide NRC and now the CAA
- the Hindu Rashtra Project of the Sangh seems to be a reality and not a
far flung prophecy: it is here to stay.
Our country is passing through one of the most serious crises to its
existence as a secular, democratic republic. It is extremely vital that all
democratically minded citizens join hands to oppose the CAA. The PUCL will
work with other human rights groups, constitutionally minded and concerned
citizens to oppose the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 and the NRC,
scheduled to be rolled out throughout India. PUCL gives a call to all
concerned citizens to follow Gandhiji’s method of civil disobedience and to
resist the nationwide NRC process and the implementation of the CAA through
non-violent means and non-cooperation and urge the people of India to save
democracy and rule of law in the country.
Mr. Ravi Kiran Jain,
Dr. V. Suresh,
National President, PUCL National
General Secretary, PUCL
---------------------------------------------------------------------
*Dr. V. Suresh*,
National General Secretary, PUCL - People's Union for Civil Liberties,
332, Patparganj, Opp. Anandlok Apartments,
Mayur Vihar - I, Delhi 110091, India.
Ph.: +91-11-22750014; (Fax): +91-11-42151459.
Personal: +91-9444231497.
II.
https://scroll.in/article/946784/in-indias-citizenship-act-an-eerie-echo-of-nazi-germanys-claims-to-protect-racial-comrades?fbclid=IwAR0RY1SguFl_fzFm-FoP6vDFWgDJVr69AA5kIv8WRszDFMPR7liHg32jm2Q
In India’s Citizenship Act, an eerie echo of Nazi Germany’s claims to
protect ‘racial comrades
<https://scroll.in/article/946784/in-indias-citizenship-act-an-eerie-echo-of-nazi-germanys-claims-to-protect-racial-comrades?fbclid=IwAR0RY1SguFl_fzFm-FoP6vDFWgDJVr69AA5kIv8WRszDFMPR7liHg32jm2Q>
Snipped
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Peace Is Doable
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