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March 12, 2024

India Enacts Anti-Muslim Citizenship Law Ahead of Election
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India has enacted a controversial citizenship law that makes it easier
for non-Muslims who have moved to India to become citizens. Under the
law, Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, Sikhs, Jains and Parsis who moved to
India before 2015 from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh would become
eligible for citizenship. The law excludes Muslim immigrants. The bill's
passage in 2019 sparked deadly protests, but the law was not implemented
until now, just ahead of a major election as Indian Prime Minister
Narendra Modi seeks a third term. Amnesty International criticized the
law, saying it is "a discriminatory law that goes against the
constitutional values of equality and international human rights law."


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