As the European Union Parliament is set to introduce an anti-to introduce an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) resolution, India said that the citizenship law is a purely internal matter and completed following due process and through democratic means.

The CAA aims to grant citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Parsi, Buddhist, and Christian refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who came to India on or before December 31st, 2014. Those protesting against the law say that the Act is discriminatory and creates a divide on the basis of religion.

Massive protests broke out in the country soon after the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Bill in both the houses of the parliament.

As many as 26 people have been killed so far in the ongoing protests against the amended citizenship law. The legislation has been criticised in India and abroad for allegedly violating the Constitution of India and its promise of equality under Article 14. It was also criticised by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.

The protesters in Assam, led by All Assam Students’ Union, said that the Act violates the historic 1985 Assam Accord. Four people had died during the anti-CAA protest in Guwahati. While an oil tanker was set ablaze in Assam’s Sonitpur district by anti-CAA protesters, killing its driver on the spot.

Photo: Time8