IUML files fresh plea in SC to stay CAA, seek clarification on NRC

Kerala's Indian Union Muslim League has filed a fresh plea in the Supreme Court for a stay on the operation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. It also sought a direction to the Union government to clarify whether the National Register for Citizens (NRC) would be prepared across the country.

The political party was the first to challenge the validity of the CAA before the top court, which had already sought a reply from the Union government and fixed the matter for hearing on January 22.

The CAA was notified in the Gazette on January 10. The Act got assent from the President on December 12, after its passage from both the Houses of Parliament.

It had triggered massive protests across the country as the opposition parties and Left-backed students and activists contended that the amendment was discriminatory and violated the spirit of secularism. The government has repeatedly claimed that the move was aimed to grant citizenship to immigrants who suffered religious persecution and was not intended to deprive any Indian of their citizenship.

In its pleas, the petitioner said, in view of steps taken by the Uttar Pradesh government to identify around 40,000 non-Muslim immigrants to grant them citizenship under the CAA, the top court should grant an immediate stay on the operation of the law.

In another application, the petitioner referred to "contradictory statements" by PM Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and other Union ministers over a connection between National Population Register (NPR) and the NRC. It asked the court to seek clarification from the Centre if the NPR was the first step for pan-India NRC.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, allows only Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, except Muslims, who entered the country from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan before December 31, 2014, to get Indian citizenship. Citizenship is rewarded for their religious persecution in these countries by reducing the period of naturalisation from 11 to five years.