The Citizenship Wreck

A wave of street protests has eroded the government’s support and united the fractured opposition. The BJP, however, is making calculated moves to win what it thinks is a battle of perception.

- Pratul Sharma

The Constitution is a vision document for the nation. In its 70th year of formulation, the revered book has, for many people, become a document of resistance; and its preamble, a song of dissent.

It has been a fortnight since Parliament passed the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, but protests against the law continue to mount. The Constitution has become the leitmotif of this agitation, with protesters holding up copies of the document to remind the government of the promises in its preamble. The CAA, they say, violates the Constitution’s objective of securing justice, liberty, equality and fraternity for all Indian citizens.

The intensity of the protests has stunned the government. It is not just the Muslims who have hit the streets, but a cross-section of people, including Hindus, who are against majoritarian politics. A turning point in the agitation was the police action against students at Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi on December 15, which amplified the intensity and spread of the protests.

In Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Delhi, the police cracked down on angry protesters, slapping cases on them and shutting down the internet. The situation stirred opposition parties into rejecting their customary cautiousness, as they began organising protests in their strongholds. The chief ministers of nine states declared that they would not abide by the CAA, nor support the proposed nationwide National Register of Indian Citizens.

Another defining moment in the agitation came on December 20, when thousands of protesters gathered outside the 17th-century Jama Masjid in Delhi. Waving the tricolour, they raised slogans, striking a historical chord. In October 1947, after partition had torn open deep rifts, freedom fighter and Congress leader Abul Kalam Azad had visited the masjid and made a fervent appeal. Resolve all doubts about your homeland, he told fellow Muslims, and choose India instead of Pakistan.