After Midnight

---

Women from all age-groups are protesting against The Law on citizenship in Shaheen bag

For More Than Two Weeks , hundreds of brave Muslim Women one of the coldest winters in India's capital new Delhi to protest against a controversial new law on state citizenship. BBC Punjabi, reports Arvind Chhabra.

On December 31, Delhi experienced its coldest day in More Than a century. But that does not deter, to stop The Women from Shaheen Bagh district. Armed with thick blankets, warm cups of tea and songs of the resistance, you are not to leave their place under a tent on a public road since the age of 15. December .

And this is how you rang in the New Year - a few minutes After Midnight , she stood up to sing the Indian national anthem.

your demand? Revoke the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The Law , which entered into force on 11 December , offers amnesty for non-Muslim immigrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The Bharatiya Janata Party-led government says it is for the protection of the religious minorities from persecution in these countries.

But the government have done, the words do little to reassure India's Muslims, many of whom are afraid to discriminate, against The Law , against you and could even push so far to go, Some out of the country or in prisons.

"I rarely leave My House , alone," says Firdaus Shafiq, one of the protesters. "My son or husband to accompany me to the nearby market. So I found it hard to be The First here.

"But I feel compelled to protest. "

And it is women like Firdaus Shafiq, of the protest in Shaheen Bagh, which is so unusual, according to activists and commentators.

Firdaus Shafiq says that women need to protest out of their houses

"These women are not activists," says Syeda Hameed, the founder of the Delhi-based Muslim Women 's Forum.

Instead, there are Muslim Women , many of them are Housewives, in the center of a national debate - to the government.

"this is the First Time , if you have a national Problem that cuts across religious lines, and I, this is important," says Mrs Hameed. To do that, "to do even if it's something to do with the victimization of [the] Muslim community, it is still a global Problem. "

learn more about The Law on citizenship

It is difficult to say how many women were started in protest, but their number grew rapidly. She came first on The Night of the 15th. December - a protest by students of Delhi, Jamia Millia Islamia University bumps together ended with The Police . The University said that The Police later came to the campus without permission and staff, and the students attacked.

The protests against The Law started after The Night spreads across the Land.

While many of the protests have come and gone, and Some have descended into violence, The Site in Shaheen Bagh remained consistently busy and peaceful.

But as it sits on The Border between East Delhi and Noida, a suburb, and serves as an important link for commuters, not everyone is happy.

"It says in relation to our business," a local Shop owner, as she says a local resident who works in Noida, it will double the time now takes him to work. Protesters say they do not want to disturb someone's life and have pledged to sit-in peacefully.

other shop-owners in Solidarity - Some have even turned up with the food. In fact, as the protest has grown, it has drawn people from all parts of The City , the students of the political commentators.

"We want to ensure that this protest are violent and that we do not give The Police a chance, with violence against us," said a protester who asked not to be named, says.

"We were forced to protest because the government", adds Ms Shafiq. "If we fail to prove our citizenship, we would be banished to the Institute, either in a prison or into exile. So it is better to fight for our rights now. "

her words reflect the citizenship, the concern of many others, is likely to endanger, to be afraid of the CAA in your state, if it is in connection with The National Register of citizens (NRC).

This is because the Nato-Russia Council request finally, the Indians, the submission of documents to prove their citizenship. But while the not-claim-Muslims, could not be made to the register under the protection of the CAA as a minority, the Muslims, without the necessary papers have the same rights and could be arrested or deported.

The cold weather has not deterred the protesters

And the government has said he has no immediate plans for a nationwide NRC, protests have continued - with Some of The Women dedicated to The Cause , you have given up, possibly temporarily.

Rizwana Bani, a daily wage worker, says that you lose, you have to pay by the day and The Night , but also afraid of what might be The Law , for you and your family

"We don't know where and how these documents have proved, that our citizenship," she says. "We are separated on the basis of religion. We are Indians, and only then, Hindus or Muslims. "

The protest has also drawn women of all ages.

"I'm not going to leave This Country , and I don't want to prove it to die, I'm an Indian," says the 70-Year -old Aasma Khatoon, who has not left the protest site for Days .

Humaira Sayed feels in other communities also need to join the protest

connect does not"connect It to me as well. My ancestors, my children and grandchildren - we are all Indians. But we don't want to prove this to anyone. "

the protesters say that The Law , as you can see, it is addressed to the Muslims but a threat to all the others as well.

"The Law violates The Constitution ," says Humaira Sayed, a student. "It's the Muslims at the moment can be targeted, but we are convinced that this is a gradual goal, other communities also.

"As a Muslim, I know I have. to be there for my brothers, the sisters, the congregation, and for all other "

india, asia

Source of news: bbc.com