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Modi Defends Indian Citizenship Law Amid Violent Protests Modi Defends Indian Citizenship Law Amid Violent Protests
(32 minutes later)
NEW DELHI — Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India used a political rally on Sunday to defend a citizenship law that has inspired mass demonstrations, accusing opposition politicians of “spreading lies” and protesters of trying to destroy the country through vandalism and bloodshed. NEW DELHI — Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India delivered on Sunday strident defense of a contentious citizenship law that has fueled deadly protests, accusing opposition politicians of “spreading lies” and demonstrators of trying to destroy the country through vandalism and bloodshed.
During an often combative speech to thousands of supporters in New Delhi, Mr. Modi signaled that he would not scrap the law, which uses religion as a criterion for determining whether illegal migrants can be fast-tracked for Indian citizenship. Critics say it is glaring evidence of his government’s plan to turn India into a Hindu-centric state and marginalize 200 million minority Muslims. During an often combative speech in New Delhi, Mr. Modi signaled that he would not scrap the law, which favors every South Asian faith other than Islam.
“Respect the Parliament!” Mr. Modi said. “Respect the Constitution! Respect the people elected by the people! I challenge the ones who are spreading lies. If there is a smell of discrimination, then put me in front of the country.” Critics argue that the law is glaring evidence of that the government plans to turn India into a Hindu-centric state and marginalize the country’s 200 million minority Muslims. Mr. Modi, in his speech, dismissed the notion that the law was discriminatory.
Over the past two weeks, hundreds of thousands of Indians have taken to the streets in opposition of the Citizenship Amendment Act, which the Indian Parliament approved early this month. Around two dozen people have been killed since the protests began, and the authorities have been criticized for detaining demonstrators — including children — without legal recourse, shutting down internet and phone services, and firing live ammunition into crowds. “Respect the Parliament!” Mr. Modi said to thousands of supporters. “Respect the Constitution! Respect the people elected by the people! I challenge the ones who are spreading lies. If there is a smell of discrimination, then put me in front of the country.”
The demonstrations are the most significant challenge to Mr. Modi’s leadership since his Bharatiya Janata Party rose to power in 2014, but they have increasingly evolved into a broader fight over the very definition of India. Demonstrators say Mr. Modi’s government has resorted to authoritarianism and brute force to erode the country’s secular foundation, shrink space for religious minorities and move the country closer to a Hindu nation. Over the past two weeks, hundreds of thousands of Indians have taken to the streets in opposition of the Citizenship Amendment Act, which the Indian Parliament approved this month. The protests have drawn people of all faiths, concerned that the law undermines India’s foundation as a secular nation.The demonstrations are the most significant challenge to Mr. Modi’s leadership since his Bharatiya Janata Party rose to power in 2014. Around two dozen people have been killed in the increasingly violent protests, and hundreds have been arrested. The authorities have been criticized for detaining demonstrators — including children — without legal recourse, shutting down internet and phone services, and firing live ammunition into crowds.
Under the government of Mr. Modi, Muslims and others have been concerned about the rise of Hindu nationalism. Muslims have been lynched by Hindu mobs. The government stripped the country’s only Muslim-majority state, Jammu and Kashmir, of its autonomy. It instituted a citizenship test in Assam, which it plans to roll out nationally.
To critics, Mr. Modi is pushing an authoritarian agenda that threatens to erode the country’s secular foundation, shrink space for religious minorities and move the country closer to a Hindu nation.