SC Hears Pleas Challenging CAA Today

The Supreme Court will hear a batch of pleas on Monday challenging the constitutional validity of Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) that was passed in 2019.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) UU Lalit, Justices Ravindra Bhat and Bela M Trivedi will hear the petitions.

The petitions were filed by AASU, Yuva Chatra Parishad including many other people of Assam challenging the amendment.

It may be mentioned that the CAA, passed on December 12, 2019, amends Section 2 of the Citizenship Act of 1955 defining ‘illegal migrants’.

According to the amendment, persons belonging to Sikh, Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian communities from three nations- Pakistan, Afghanistan or Bangladesh, who were exempted by the Central Government under the Passport (Entry to India) Act, 1920, or the Foreigners Act, 1946, will not be treated as ‘illegal migrants’.

Those people can apply for citizenship under the 1955 act.

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The amendment act triggered widespread protests in India for specifically excluding Muslim community from the proviso.

In January 2020, a bench led by the then CJI SA Bobde issued a notice in the petitions.

The Centre, in response to the petitions, had said that the act is a ‘benign legislation’ which has a narrow purpose and ought not to be combined beyond legislative intent.

Meanwhile, a fresh affidavit was also filed on Sunday following an order of the CJI.

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