Bengaluru: The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) that intends to grant citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim minorities in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan has received a lot of flak from the Indian opposition parties. 

But in the midst of crisis, there is indeed a silver lining. 

The Rajasthan government, which is in the forefront of not implementing the Act, finally succumbed to the pressure by the Hindu groups and granted citizenship to 8 Hindu refugees who have come from Sindh, Pakistan. 

The persecuted minorities could not hide their glee. 

One of them said, “We came here because our families are already here. We are very thankful to India for giving us citizenship. I am so happy and I have no words to express it.”
Another one said, “We have been living here for 20-25 years. We have never faced any problems here. And all the Sindhis living there want to come to India. We are very happy here. We have not faced any kind of problem here until now.” 

The Act was passed by both houses of the Indian Parliament and assented by the Indian President, thereby making it a law. However, many opposition-ruled states have refused to implement the law, saying it is discriminatory. 

As the chorus of opposition grows, the PM and the Union home minister Amit Shah have reiterated that the law doesn’t differentiate and grants citizenship rather than taking it away. 

But the opposition has resorted to spreading lies saying that the law affects Indian citizens as well. 

The law is a one-time offer for non-Muslims in the considered Islamic states who have been living in India before December 31, 2019. 

Also to be noted here is that in the name of anti-CAA protests, many protesters have resorted to vandalism like torching of buses, tearing apart railway lines among others.