Indian Muslim League challenges CAA implementation in Supreme Court

PTC News Desk: Following the Centre's notification of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) rules, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has swiftly moved to challenge the implementation in the Supreme Court. Based primarily in Kerala, the IUML deems the law "unconstitutional" and "discriminatory" against Muslims, urging a halt to its enforcement.

The CAA, passed in 2019, grants citizenship to non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan fleeing religious persecution. Those from Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, or Christian communities who entered India on or before December 31, 2014, are eligible for citizenship under the Act.

IUML, which was among the earliest challengers of the law in 2019, asserts that the exclusion of Muslims violates the right to equality under Article 14 of the Constitution. Previously, IUML had sought to suspend the Act's implementation, but the Centre assured the court that the law would not be enforced until the rules were notified.

The petition now insists on a pause in implementing the CAA rules until the Supreme Court rules on the 250 pending petitions contesting the Act's constitutional validity. Emphasising India's secular ethos, the petition contends that any law must be religion-neutral in alignment with the Constitution's preamble.

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The Centre's announcement triggered varied reactions across the country. While members of the Matua community in Bengal and Sindhi refugees in Bhopal celebrated the move, protests erupted in Assam over concerns about large-scale migration. Elsewhere, dissenters criticised the law's alleged discrimination against Muslims.

Opposition parties, particularly the Congress, have criticised the timing of the Act's implementation, just weeks before the Lok Sabha polls. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh accused the BJP of using the Act to polarise voters in Assam and West Bengal, questioning the delayed implementation despite the law being passed in December 2019.

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(Inputs from agencies)

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