NEW DELHI: Amid the ongoing protests across the country, a group of about 1,100 academicians, intellectuals and research scholars has issued a joint statement in support of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

The group, in a statement, has said that the act fulfils the long-standing demand of providing refuge to persecuted religious minorities from Pakistan , Bangladesh and Afghanistan .

Live: CAA protests across India

"Ever since the failure of the Liaquat-Nehru pact of 1950, various leaders and political parties like the Congress, CPM etc, cutting across the ideological spectrum, have demanded the grant of citizenship to religious minorities from Pakistan and Bangladesh who mostly belong to the Dalit castes," the group said.

The group congratulated Parliament and government for "standing up for forgotten minorities" and "upholding the civilizational ethos of India" and also for providing a haven to those fleeing religious persecution.

"We also note with satisfaction that the concerns of the Northeastern states have been heard and are being addressed appropriately. We believe that CAA is in perfect sync with the secular Constitution of India as it does not prevent any person of any religion from any country, seeking Indian citizenship. Nor does it change the criteria of citizenship in any way; merely providing a special expedited redress, under special circumstances, for minorities fleeing religious persecution from three specific countries i.e. Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan," they said.

"It does not in any way prevent Ahmadis, Hazaras, Baloch or any other denominations and ethnicities, from these same three countries, seeking citizenship through regular processes," the statement said.

The group said that an atmosphere of fear and paranoia is being created in the country through deliberate obfuscation and fear-mongering leading to violence in several parts of the country. "We appeal to every section of society to exercise restraint and refuse to fall into the trap of propaganda, communalism and anarchism," the group further added.

Here is the list of the signatories

