Nearly 100,000 Sri Lankan refugees who are living in India are not eligible for citizenship under a new law, sparking concerns that they may be forced to return to the island nation they fled during a decadeslong civil war, many with no homes to return to.
India's Citizenship Amendment Act aims to fast-track citizenship for persecuted Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Christians who arrived in India before Dec. 31, 2014, from the Muslim-majority nations of Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
The law excludes nearly 100,000 Sri Lankan Tamils, an ethnic minority, who live in India, including about 60,000 in camps in southern Tamil Nadu state, according to the home department.