USCIRF: Citizenship Laws and Religious Freedom
March 4, 2020
In March 2020, Ashutosh Varshney testified in front of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom during the hearing for citzenship laws and religious freedom. He highlighted the recent Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in India and the ways in which some individuals feel it targets muslim immigrants.
Throughout his testimony, Ashutosh Varshney focused on two specific questions: Does India's recent Citizenship Amendment Act target the nation's muslim minority? And if so, in what ways? He continues to delve deeper into the issue, which initially began on December 11, 2019, when India's Parliament passed the Act orginally framed in 1955. Varshney also touches upon the subsequent violent riots that have dominated regions of the country over the past two months.