The United States has appealed to Indian authorities to "protect and respect the right to peaceful assembly", and at the same time urged the protesters to refrain from violence while demonstrating against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
"We are closely following developments regarding the Citizenship Amendment Act. We urge authorities to protect and respect the right to peaceful assembly. We also urge protestors to refrain from violence," a US States Department spokesperson told ANI on Monday (local time).
Stressing that "respect for religious freedom and equal treatment under the law are fundamental principles of our two democracies", the state Department said, "The United States urges India to protect the rights of its religious minorities in keeping with India's Constitution and democratic values."
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Protests in several parts of the country over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, which the Parliament approved in its recently concluded winter session.
Protests at several places, including Assam and New Delhi, had turned violent over the past few days, leading to action by the police.
The CAA seeks to provide citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have faced religious persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan and have arrived in India on or before December 31, 2014.
(With inputs from ANI)
