The passing of the Citizenship Amendment Bill is one of the darkest moments in Independent India's history. For the first time in India, citizenship is being granted based on religion.

The bill seeks to offer citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist and Christian refugees from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, but Muslims have been excluded from the bill.

The bill is discriminatory and violates our Constitution because our Constitution had delinked citizenship with religious or any other kind of identity. The bill also aims to destroy the social fabric of the nation. The nature of the bill is unconstitutional and abuses what the Indian democracy stands for.

Our founding fathers after Independence envisioned a Secular State, which carried forth the values of our National Movement. India's leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Dr B.R Ambedkar and Dr Rajendra Prasad among many had rejected the idea of religion as a criterion in determining citizenship.

BJP government's politics of divide and rule based on a two-nation theory is unforgivable and must not be tolerated in today's India.

The fight against the bill is a fight for the Indian Constitution and the idea of India envisioned by our founding fathers who gave their lives for our independence.

We strongly condemn this divisive bill meant to create instability and conflict among the people. We urge you to sign this petition to uphold our secular constitution.

In such dire times, when our country is threatened we must come together as one in condemning the anti-people Citizenship Amendment Bill.