Authorities in India's most-populous state have been bracing for protests after Friday prayers. At least 16 people have been killed in the state, most of them shot dead.
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Authorities shut down mobile internet and text messaging services in Muslim-majority areas of the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh on Friday, ahead of planned protests. About one third of the state was affected by internet blocks.
Thousands of paramilitary and police were deployed, while security drones flew overhead in expectation of further clashes. More people have died in the state than in all the others together during nationwide protests over a new citizenship law that excludes Muslim people.
India's new citizenship law ignites religious tensions
Dozens of people have been killed as a result of protests against India's controversial Citizenship Amendment Act. Critics say the law is aimed at marginalizing Muslims and goes against India's secular constitution.
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Shutdown in parts of India
The Indian government suspended internet services and tightened security on Friday in several parts of the country, including the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. The government is expecting another wave of violent protests against the controversial new Citizenship Amendment Act, which was enacted on December 11.
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Defending India's secular constitution
The new law gives Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Christian and Parsi immigrants from Muslim-majority Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan a path toward fast-track citizenship. Critics say the law discriminates against Muslims and that the award of citizenship based on religion violates India's secular constitution.
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Fears of citizenship registration
The Indian government is also preparing plans for a National Register of Citizens (NRC), in what it says is an attempt to identify and expel undocumented illegal immigrants. If a nationwide NRC is implemented, critics fear that residents unable to prove citizenship would be turned stateless. A similar exercise in Assam state has already excluded nearly 2 million residents from the list.
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Outcry of intellectuals
Several liberal-minded intellectuals such as the well-known writer Arundhati Roy have sharply criticized the new law and the government's plan to create a nationwide citizenship registration. Conservative politicians such as Subramanian Swamy, a former minister of commerce, has called for Roy to be arrested and charged with sedition.
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Students against the new law
Students from several universities across the country have taken to the streets to protest against the new measures. Several student organizations are at the forefront of the protests. They are making use of social media to wage a parallel battle online and teach people how to organize demonstrations.
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Police cracking down on protesters
Indian authorities have deployed thousands of riot police to control the protests. At least 25 people have so far died in two weeks of at times violent demonstrations. India's army chief has also criticized the role of students in the protests.
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Hindu nationalists adamant
Prime minister Narendra Modi's Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has remained adamant throughout the protests. They say that people are misguided and don't understand the real meaning of the law. The BJP blames the opposition Congress Party for creating confusion and igniting fear.
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Supporters of new citizenship act
The Rashitrya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is a right-wing, Hindu-nationalist paramilitary volunteer organization. Members of the group, which is the parent organization of the BJP, were seen parading on the outskirts of Hyderabad in support of the new law.
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More than 1,000 people have been arrested in the state and more than 5,000 others have been taken into preventive custody, some of them as young as 16, according to media reports.
About 200 people have been ordered to pay compensation for damage caused to public property, and more than 100 people have been charged over social media posts deemed to be objectionable or misleading.
India's most-populous state is governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party — the party of Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was reelected earlier this year.
The new law makes it easier for non-Muslims from three countries to become naturalized citizens. This law, along with plans for a citizens register, has stoked domestic and international fears about the marginalization of Muslims.
Demonstrations took place after Friday prayers in the cities of Delhi, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Mumbai, but there were no major reports of violence.
In Dehli, police reportedly beat a group of protesters and shoved them into buses as they attempted to demonstrate. About two dozen people had gathered near a state government building.
Nearby, security forces surrounded a rally at one of India's largest mosques.
