Open Letter to the Government of India We are Indian students and researchers residing in France, and we strongly condemn the series of measures initiated by the Indian state to enable the formation of a second-class citizenry within India, and the disproportionately violent actions undertaken using the state machinery - both legal and extra-legal - to stifle the dissenting voices. The Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019 that was passed by the Indian parliament on 11 December 2019 is fundamentally discriminatory in nature, and resorts to the classification of citizens on the basis of religion for the first time in the history of independent India. It violates Article 14 of the Constitution of India which explicitly calls for the equal protection of all persons under the law, and it is also antithetic to the secular spirit of India as enshrined in the Preamble to the Constitution of India. We strongly appeal for a repeal of this discriminatory and divisive law. We also realise that in conjunction with the National Register of Citizens (NRC), which has been formulated in Assam, and the ongoing creation of the National Population Register (NPR), the CAA will establish the legal framework to deny access or prolong the process to obtain Indian citizenship to individuals not belonging to six specific religious communities, notably discriminating against Muslims. This potential disenfranchisement of Indian Muslims and Indian citizens not belonging to the six religious communities is deplorable, and we are firmly against the idea of labelling some citizens as second-class citizens, whatever the criterion of doing so. The ratification of the CAA and the introduction of the NRC occur amidst escalating violence against minorities in India, an alarming surge in Islamophobic propaganda, and suppression of all forms of dissent. That the present government has formulated these measures as a step to protect minorities is a convenient smokescreen, and we appeal to the fellow citizens of India to recognise it as such. The government of India is using its democratic mandate, in the name of its citizens, to stifle dissent, forcefully suppress peaceful protests and curb basic services in various parts of India using the police, paramilitary forces, and armed forces. Presently, the erstwhile state of Jammu & Kashmir's Kashmir valley region, parts of Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, West Bengal, New Delhi, and Tripura - some of them Muslim-majority areas - have an internet blockade and curfew imposed on them, with additional restrictions on free movement, freedom of speech, telecommunications and rights to peacefully protest. These extremely reprehensible measures enacted by the Government of India raises serious questions on its intention to safeguard the fundamental human rights of all Indian citizens, and more generally of upholding the principles of democracy as defined in the Constitution of India. We join our fellow citizens in voicing our protest against the policies and measures enacted by the Indian government that violates the principles of liberty, equality, fraternity and justice. Discrimination against minority groups, a threat to the upholding of the principles of the Constitution of India, severe encroachment on the autonomy of the states in the federal structure of the Indian executive, and violent government action against its citizens have plagued our collective conscience. In this regard, we condemn, in the strongest possible terms, the extreme action undertaken by the police in forcibly entering university campuses and brutally attacking students protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act in Jamia Millia Islamia University, Aligarh Muslim University, Cotton University, B. Borooah College and Handique Girls’ College in Guwahati, and elsewhere in India. Such brutality has the motive of suppressing any kind of dissent, peaceful or otherwise. We strongly condemn such actions and express solidarity with the students of these universities. As students ourselves, we believe that it is essential that university spaces are not converted to violent arenas of conflict by the Indian state, and to foster the democratic practice of tolerating dissent against the policies of the state by its own students. We stand in solidarity with the citizens of India who have bravely countered the passage of this discriminatory act with dissent and strong opposition, and fought against the discriminatory practices of the Indian executive and legislature to ensure that the idea of India, as given to us by the Constitution, is neither diluted nor distorted. In closing, we demand the repeal of CAA, an investigation into police misconduct against protestors, lifting of curfews, and resumption of internet and communication services across the country. [Signatures at https://tinyurl.com/caafrsign]
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