SC to Hear Final CAA Petitions from May 5
- By Thetripurapost Desk, Guwahati
- Feb 19, 2026
- 553
On February 19, the Supreme Court of India announced that it will commence final hearings on May 5 in more than 200 petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA).
The petitions — including the lead plea filed by the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) — have remained pending since 2019–2020. The CAA provides a pathway to Indian citizenship for migrants belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Christian, Jain and Parsi communities who entered India from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan on or before December 31, 2014.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi issued procedural directions governing the final phase of arguments.
The court stated that it will first hear the petitioners, including the IUML, over one-and-a-half days, following which the Union government will be allotted a full day to advance its submissions.
The bench indicated that the hearings are slated to conclude by May 12. It further directed all parties to file any additional affidavits, documents, and written submissions within four weeks.
The court clarified that it will initially adjudicate issues pertaining to the pan-India applicability of the CAA before taking up petitions specifically concerning Assam and Tripura.
Since its enactment, the CAA has been the subject of sustained legal scrutiny and political contestation. Critics contend that the statute infringes upon the constitutional guarantee of equality, whereas the Centre maintains that the legislation is a narrowly tailored humanitarian measure designed to extend protection to persecuted minorities from neighbouring countries.