The protests against the Citizens Amendment Act have been going on for quite some time, with most protesters having little idea of what they are protesting about. The issues relating to the Amendment of the Citizens Act have been discussed in the print and audio-visual media in detail. In effect, the amendment merely seeks to provide relief to minorities of three Islamic countries, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, who have fled and sought shelter in India on account of religious persecution. All that the amendment has done is one, define who can be considered a migrant. Two, reduce the time period of legitimate stay for consideration for citizenship from 11 years to 5 years and three, to bring a clause that such people cannot be prosecuted. But despite the factual position being known, imaginary fears are continually being fuelled, which has created a sense of unease in the minds of a section of society.
One of the canards being spread is that the amendment to the Act violates Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the Indian Constitution. This is patently false. The amendment is only designed to assist persecuted minorities from the relevant countries to acquire citizenship in a faster time frame and does not discriminate amongst that class of people. Therefore, it is not violative of Article 14. As the Act is not applicable to Indian citizens, it does not violate Article 15. On similar grounds, it is not violative of Article 21, as the amendment to the Act has no bearing on the citizens rights and liberties which remain intact as hitherto fore. It must also be noted that the amendment to the Citizenship Act was passed by both houses of Parliament, and there is no infirmity with respect to the procedures involved. Whether the CAA is constitutionally valid is a matter which is before the Apex Court and therefore, it would behove all concerned not to pre-judge the issue.
Another canard being spread is that the amendment violates India’s secular character, as enshrined in the preamble to the Indian Constitution. This again is false. The amendment is designed to give citizenship to those hapless minorities, who have been religiously persecuted in countries which have become Islamic states. It caters to address a historical injustice, for which no less a person than Mahatma Gandhi had given such an assurance. This assurance was also repeated by Mr Nehru, so it is not something new. The amendment also does not prevent Muslims from other countries getting Indian citizenship for which separate provisions of the Citizenship Act exist.
The third canard is that many citizens will be deprived of their citizenship. This canard is absurd, with the Prime Minister himself reiterating time and again that the amendment to the Act will not impact any Indian citizen, but still this fear mongering is being encouraged. It is evident then, that the protests are being engineered with a motive to deliberately invoke a feeling of insecurity amongst a section of society, create communal disharmony and fuel discontent.
The coordinated manner in which false information is being spread points to sinister designs at work to weaken the credibility of the government and to undermine the secular ethos of India. The protests being carried out across the country receive continuous media coverage, but every event shown by the media may not be a true reflection of Indian society. It only represents those who have come out on the street. Apprehensions appear to have been propagated by vested interests to give an impression that all is not well. In this, the backing of foreign powers also appears probable. People are being instigated to protest, which may not be in the best interests of society.
An analysis of the social media indicates that a large part of messaging in Facebook and Twitter is coming from across the border in Pakistan. While a Pakistani citizen has full rights to comment on events in India, it seems inconceivable that so many citizens of a foreign country will suddenly get so involved in the affairs of a neighbouring country. The systematic and coordinated manner in which this activity is being carried out, points to an organisation at work, which is actively producing content and then disseminating it.
Within India, the coordinated nature of the protests once again indicates a great deal of prior planning to enable simultaneous execution at multiple points across the country. Interestingly, most people who form the large crowds collected at various places are for the most part unaware of what the issue is about against which they are protesting. Obviously, the crowds have not come spontaneously for a cause in which they believe in, but have been collected together through financial or other inducement to partake in the protest.
What is being witnessed in the protests against the CAA is a classic case of information warfare, to shape the information environment. The opinion of a large segment of India’s youth, especially its students have been influenced to believe that the CAA will deprive millions of Muslims from their Indian citizenship. Many students also believe that the CAA is aimed at appeasing Hindu nationalists. Nothing could be further from the truth but the way false information has not only been spread but found a great deal of credibility among vast segments of society, points to forces which are inimical to Indian interests and which are working to destabilise the country. Innocent youth have been caught up in this vicious propaganda, as have other segments of society, especially segments of the Muslim community.
There is a need for an effective perception management campaign by the government as also by vast segments of civil society to counteract this vicious propaganda unleashed against the CAA. This is the knowledge age, where information is a key determinant. We need to ensure that information is not used as a weapon against the state. It would be appropriate if the right lessons are now learnt from the protests that have take place on the issue of the CAA so that preventive action is taken before hand, before the situation can get out of control.
