Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to travel to Dhaka on March 17th, 2020 in the midst of rising concerns in Bangladesh over India’s Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the proposed nation-wide National Register of Citizens (NRC).

Modi is visiting Dhaka at the invitation of his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina to attend the centenary celebrations of Bangladesh founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

It may be mentioned, Hasina had earlier said that she did not understand the purpose of the CAA passed in India. Speaking to Gulf News in the UAE capital of Abu Dhabi, Hasina said, “We don’t understand why [the Indian government] did it. It was not necessary.”

The CAA aims to grant citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Parsi, Buddhist, and Christian refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who came to India on or before December 31st, 2014.

Massive protests broke out in the country soon after the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Bill in both the houses of the Parliament. Those protesting against the law say that the Act is discriminatory and creates a divide on the basis of religion.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen and Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan cancelled their visits to India in December last year over the non-stop protests following the passage of the Bill by Parliament.

Photo credit: Rajya Sabha TV