The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 came into force from Friday, the Union home ministry announced during the day.

“In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of Section 1 of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (47 of 2019), the central government hereby appoints the 10th day of January, 2020, as the date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force,” the one paragraph notice said.

The gazette notification (Picture sourced by The Telegraph)

Sub-section (2) of Section 1 of CAA says the Act “shall come into force on such date as the central government may, by notification in the official gazette, appoint.”

But the home ministry is yet to frame the rules for the Act.

It came into force amid countrywide protests against it. The Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) was passed by the Lok Sabha on December 9 last year and by the Rajya Sabha on December 11. It got the President’s assent on December 13.

The notification came a day after the Supreme Court expressed surprise at a public interest plea that sought a declaration that the Act was “constitutionally valid”, saying that such petitions do not help a country going through “difficult times”.

The top court was supposed to take up on January 22 around 60 petitions that have challenged the constitutional validity of the amended act on the ground of alleged discrimination against Muslims.

The CAA facilitates citizenship to non-Muslim minorities from three neighbouring countries who had entered the country before 2015 even without valid documents.

In Assam, various organisations and people are apprehensive that it would open the door to Hindus living in Bangladesh, thereby threatening the indigenous language and culture.

The All Assam Students’ Union (AASU), which has been spearheading an agitation against CAA along with 30 other organisations, said they would bring the matter to the notice of the Supreme Court.

“At a time the Chief Justice himself said the country was going through a difficult time and a number of petitions on the issue are pending with the court, how can the Centre come out with such a notification? We will bring the matter to the notice of the Supreme Court,” said Lurinjyoti Gogoi, general secretary of AASU, which is one of the petitioners.