In the southern Indian state of Kerala, a local businessman, Haja Hussain made a striking appearance at his wedding, mounted on camel and holding an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) placard in his hands. The camel-mounted groom also carried a copy of the Indian Constitution.
Hussain’s poster read: “Reject CAA, Boycott NRC and NPR”.
Anti-CAA protest: Kerala groom arrives on camel, gifts Constitution#AntiCAAProtests #Kerala #HajaHussain #CitizenshipActhttps://t.co/sw0xzKnrlK
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As part of the traditional ritual “Meher”, where the groom offers pricey possessions to the bride, Hussain had a copy of the Indian Constitution for his bride, reiterating the importance of the official document and his anti-CAA stance, reports English daily The Hindustan Times on its news site.
Kerala witnessed large-scale protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 or CAA enacted by the federal government in December 2019. The state has also challenged the constitutional validity of the law in the Supreme Court of India.
Evidently, national issues are being taken very seriously by young Indians.
During last weekend's elections to the state legislature in the national capital Delhi, a groom decided to take a detour to his wedding venue, making a quick stop at the polling booth to cast his vote.
Only after the blue coloured ink, which is a mark of casting a vote in India, was added to the groom’s henna-coloured hand, his relatives and friends proceeded towards the wedding venue.
The controversial CAA grants citizenship to non-Muslim minorities from India’s neighbours Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh. Conspicuously, the law left out Muslims, which was seen by its opponents as discriminatory on religious grounds and also against the secular credentials of the Indian Constitution.
Meanwhile, the new National Register of Citizens (NRC) and National Population Register (NPR) require Indian citizens to prove their nationality with documents and paperwork.
