New Delhi: On Tuesday, the Supreme Court issued notices to the Union government in response to over 20 applications seeking a halt to the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act and the associated Rules. These notifications were made effective on March 11, 2024. The Supreme Court has requested a response from the Centre within a three-week period and scheduled a hearing for April 9, 2024.
Hearing a batch of 200 petitions seeking a stay on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) 2019, petitioners repeatedly requested to halt the process of granting citizenship to persecuted communities from Islamic states such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh until the Supreme Court decided on the stay application.
The petitions were heard by a bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and comprised of Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra.
The plea was filed by the Indian Union Muslim League, which sought protection for Muslims under the Citizenship Amendment Act. IUML urged the court to enable Muslims to apply for citizenship and requested a report on their eligibility.
A key challenger of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) since 2019 argues that it establishes a biased and discriminatory process for granting citizenship, solely based on religious identity, which they consider arbitrary.
