Protests intensify across India

New citizenship law expands rights to non-Muslim migrants

NEW DELHI — Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of a number of Indian cities on Monday, just hours after dozens of demonstrators and police officers were injured as protests at university campuses turned violent.

The Citizenship Amendment Act approved last week entitles non-Muslim migrants from three Muslim-majority countries to citizenship if they are facing religious persecution.

Critics say the bill brought by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government is anti-Muslim, while many in northeastern border states fear an influx of migrants.

Four people were killed in the northeastern state of Assam in protests since last week.

The unrest began on Sunday evening after a protest march by students from the Jamia Millia Islamia university in New Delhi led to violent clashes with police.

Police used tear gas and detained 100 students and released them early Monday.

At least 69 people including 39 protestors and 30 police were injured and at least four buses and 100 motorcycles were burnt, police spokesman MS Randhawa said.

After police were accused of using excessive force to quell the protests in New Delhi, clashes broke out at the prestigious Aligarh Muslim University in northern India.

Since late Sunday, students at university campuses across cities such as Mumbai, Hyderabad, Varanasi, Kolkata and Chennai came out in support of their counterparts in New Delhi and held demonstrations.

Students pelted police with stones in Lucknow’s Nadwa University early Monday, reports said.

Also on Monday, tens of thousands of protestors in West Bengal and Kerala, both opposition-party ruled states, took out rallies and protest marches against the “unconstitutional” citizenship law.

Students in Bengaluru and Chandigarh also planned protests against the amended Citizenship Act.