The Huddle 2020 | CAA is creating two pathways of citizenship based on religion, says Yamini Aiyar

The Citizenship Act fundamentally upends the Indian Constitution by creating two very distinct pathways of citizenship on the basis of religion, according to President of the Centre for Policy Research Yamini Aiyar. By “introducing a religion test into our definition of citizenship and what it means to be an Indian”, the Act is now “reopening in a fundamental way” a debate that was long settled by the Constitution, said Ms. Aiyar on Saturday, speaking at a session on the CAA at The Huddle, the annual thought conclave of The Hindu. Mr. Chandrasekhar said while the Act would fast-track citizenship for a group of people who have been refugees in India for several years post-Partition, it was incorrect to suggest that the Act “prohibits any other class of foreigner to apply for and get citizenship”. The CAA creates the legislative framework using which what emerges out of the NPR-NRC process will potentially create protections for some communities, and question the citizenship of others.” Political sparring aside, Ms. Aiyar told her fellow speakers that one heartening outcome they both should agree on was the large-scale political awakening of university students.