Supreme Court to hear Centre’s plea on transfer of petitions challenging CAA pending at various High Courts

On Wednesday, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta approached the top court pleading an urgent mention before a Bench led by Chief Justice of India Sharad A Bobde. He submitted before the apex court a probable situation wherein various High Courts might deliver mutually conflicting views on the legality of the CAA, leading to confusion.

Mehta said the Supreme Court should make an authoritative pronouncement on the law.

The bench comprising justices B R Gavai and Surya Kant, and headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde, said it will hear the transfer petition of the Centre on January 10. Earlier, a three-judge Bench led by the CJI has scheduled a hearing on January 22.

Several petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court representing different political parties as well as people belonging to all walks of life from across the country. 

The petitioners include parliamentarians such as Jairam Ramesh, Mahua Moitra and Asaduddin Owaisi and parties such as Assam Gana Parishad, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Kamal Haasan’s Makkal Needhi Maiam and Kerala’s Indian Union Muslim League and an association of lawyers from Assam.

On December 18, 2019, the Supreme Court had agreed to examine the constitutional validity of the CAA, but refused to stay its operation.

The newly amended law seeks to grant citizenship to non-Muslim migrants belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Christian, Jain and Parsi communities who came to the country from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan on or before December 31, 2014.

President Ram Nath Kovind have also given his assent to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 on December 12, 2019 turning it into an Act.

Notably, protests against the new law have taken place across India for weeks. The government has clarified that the new Act is not anti-Muslim, insisting that it is meant to give citizenship — not take it — and has launched an outreach programme.