By Najiya O, TwoCircles.net
The backlash against the passing of the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (now an Act) has been fierce across the nation. Assam and other northeastern states are now seeing protests on the streets and the subsequent backlash by security forces, but even in states unlikely to be impacted ‘directly’ by CAB, the fear is palpable. Amit Shah has made it clear that the present NDA government will not stop at just the CAB and will go ahead with a nationwide National Registrar of Citizens leaving millions across the nation confused, in fear and unaware about what to do next.
In Kerala, for example, it has become a topic of discussion among families, especially Muslim families. From articles and speeches on the CAB to videos on the discussions on the Bill in the Parliament, all have widely been shared even in family WhatsApp groups. The list of documents needed for the NRC and CAB are now being shared among the family members via social media like a contingency plan.
But the problem is, most do not even know where to begin, how to begin and if at all they even need to begin preparing their documents.
In the discussions TwoCircles.net had with people from different places, it was clear that people were confused about the CAB and the NRC. The CAB is expected to affect only the immigrants, but people were already worried about the NRC which is yet to be introduced in the Parliament. They were busy correcting documents to pass the NRC test.
“We don’t know what is going to happen, but it is always better to keep all documents ready as early as possible. We can check and cross-check all the documents and make sure the names, dates, spellings etc are correct. If there is any mistake, we can try to correct them now itself. Such corrections will be difficult once the census process begins next year. We have just reminded all in the family group to take care of this matter,” said O Abdul Vahab from Manjeri in Malappuram.
However, he added that only some have responded to the message while many wish that nothing untoward will happen. Not all the people, after all, would have the documents from 1951 onwards. When asked about the public outcry and calls for rejecting and not cooperating with the law, he said it was always good to keep the documents in order. “Though we hear that the Bill would be questioned in the Supreme Court, what guarantee do we have of the Supreme Court now especially after the Babri verdict? Why take a risk in the matter?” he asked.
In another WhatsApp group where Vahab is a member, the members have decided to form a committee which can assist the members in getting their documents right.
Saeeda, another concerned resident, was in the Panchayat Office in a village in Kozhikode last day to correct the spelling and other errors in her name and date of birth in different documents. “All are worried. Wherever people flock, it is discussions about the citizenship law, whether it be at the Panchayat office or the market. Though it is said it is going to affect Muslims, others also are worried. I saw many at the Panchayat Office who had come to correct the errors in their documents,” she said.
The citizenship law was discussed when she met her mother and sisters last week. They talked about how it was going to affect them, what to do to avoid any confusions, etc. And this prompted her to move forward fast with the corrections in documents.
However, not all groups have moved to concrete steps. In many groups discussions are going on, members express their worries and anxieties but are in the hope that such issues won’t come to Kerala where the LDF which opposed the bill is in power. “All are worried and anxious because we don’t know what the bill says,” opined Dr Saphala in Calicut. “Let’s hope that it won’t be implemented in Kerala, but what to do if it is done as in the case of Kashmir? What if it is forced upon us? Not all will have documents from 1951. The upper and middle classes may have some documents to show, but those who suffer are always the lower classes.”
Rubisha from Kozhikode said she had seen messages in her family WhatsApp group about the documents necessary for inclusion as a citizen but had not cared much about it. Many like her are confident that nothing untoward would happen. Many others said that it just came only, there will be time to take care of the documents before it is implemented. After all, a law that affects lakhs in the country wouldn’t be implemented all of a sudden.
Contrary to the general uproar against the CAB, few people didn’t see many faults with the new law. “I wouldn’t blame a government for introducing a strong law restricting immigration,” said Abdul Rasheed of Malappuram. “Since Pakistan and Bangladesh are Muslim-majority countries, there is no need for Muslims there to come to India. A government should know the details of the foreigners living in the country. It is a matter of national security. Instead of rejecting this law altogether, we should oppose only those clauses which are problematic and approach the courts if necessary.” However, he also added that he was not going into details about how the law could be misused to target specific groups only. He expressed his belief that it was impossible to uproot 17 million Muslims living in the country. “And this law has led to people keeping and correcting their documents which is very important,” he added.
People are confused and anxious, and most have misunderstood the CAB with the NRC. Even in families where political discussions are rare, the new law has triggered such discussions. People are talking about this when they meet each other, whether it be wedding functions or funeral, in hospitals or markets. And people are now keen to correct the errors in their documents. A spelling error in the name of one person may affect several in the family. (Eg, if the spelling of the name of the mother is different in the children’s birth certificates and school leaving certificates.) Now you can’t get away with ‘What’s in a name’.