Women during a sit-in protest against Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), National Register of Citizens (NRC) and National Population Register (NPR), at Shaheen Bagh in New Delhi.
Amid protests over the anti-CAA protests in Delhi's Shaheen Bagh and other parts in the country, over 150 prominent citizens including former judges, bureaucrats, army officers and academicians have written to President Ram Nath Kovind saying that a "false and motivated" campaign is being launched against the law, the National Population Register (NPR) and NRC to harm the nation.
In the letter, they urged the Centre to look into the ongoing protests with all seriousness, safeguard the nation's democratic institutions and take stern action against people behind them.
11 former judges, 24 ex-IAS officers write to President
The signatories of the letter, including 11 former judges of different high courts, 24 retired IAS officers, 11 former Indian Foreign Service officers, 16 retired IPS and 18 former Lieutenant Generals, said "fear" is being spread across the country.
They said the campaign is being carried out in a "coordinated manner" leading to violent protests in which public and private property has been destroyed.
The signatories said there has been a "false and nefarious narrative" about CAA, NPR and NRC.
They said that while the CAA has been enacted, the idea of NPR and NRC which has been a part of the Indian discourse since Independence remains to be implemented.
"This (protests) has grave security implications and does not bode well for our motherland. While ostensibly claiming to oppose government policies, they are in effect designed to destroy the very fabric of this country and harm the nation's unity and integrity," they said.
According to CAA, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have come to India from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014, will not be treated as illegal immigrants but given Indian citizenship.
(With inputs from PTI)
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