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Opinions Divided? Supporters of India's Citizenship Law Blast Protesters' ‘Half Baked Knowledge’

© AP Photo / Manish SwarupAn Indian Lawmaker from Congress party, Abdul Khaleque holds a banner in protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill at the Parliament House, in New Delhi, India, 13 December 2019
An Indian Lawmaker from Congress party, Abdul Khaleque holds a banner in protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill at the Parliament House, in New Delhi, India, 13 December 2019 - Sputnik International
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New Delhi (Sputnik): Protests over a new citizenship law in India have been raging across the country since its enactment. The law allows citizenship to be granted non-Muslim immigrants such as Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and Parsis from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, but Muslims aren't eligible.

While thousands of people, including students and famous personalities, took to the streets to show their disagreement with a new citizenship law, a simultaneous protest emerged in support of the act and started trending on Twitter as netizens feel that those who are protesting have a half baked knowledge about it.

Twitterati also suggest that Government should not differentiate between citizens on the basis of religion, necessitating the adoption of a Uniform Civil Code.

Some even raised questions on Bollywood personalities Like Farhan Akhtar and Swara Bhasker who joined the protesters against the law and blamed them for building “false narratives”.

Many social media users shared the videos of “Massive rallies” that were organised in support of the act.

One user also shared information on new law for those "misinformed" crowd.

The new Act along with a proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) have led to nationwide protests, especially by the Muslim community, who allege it is discriminatory. The NRC calls for the identification of all illegal immigrants living in India, but some Muslims are concerned that when the NRC is launched across India, only Muslims will have to prove their citizenship and not people of any other faith.

The Citizenship Law grants citizenship to illegal immigrants from six religious minorities – Hindus, Parsis, Jains, Christians, Buddhists, and Sikhs, from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, if they arrived in India prior to 31 December, 2014. It, however, excludes Muslims - a decision viewed by many protesters as a breach of the Indian constitution.

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