The bench, led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, will preside over the hearings concerning the CAA. Last week, Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal brought attention to a plea filed by the Kerala-based Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), expressing concerns over the timing of the law’s implementation, particularly with Lok Sabha elections on the horizon.The petitioners challenging the CAA contend that the law discriminates against Muslims based on religion, violating the principles of equality enshrined in Article 14 of the Indian Constitution. They argue that the religious segregation introduced by the CAA lacks reasonable differentiation and undermines the fundamental right to equality.Among the diverse group of petitioners are political leaders such as Trinamool Congress’ Mahua Moitra, Congress’ Jairam Ramesh, and AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi, along with organizations like Rihai Manch, Citizens Against Hate, and the Assam Advocates Association. The IUML, Debabrata Saikia, and various student and youth organizations have also contested the CAA Rules 2024, which facilitated the law’s implementation.Kerala emerged as the first state to challenge the CAA in 2020, citing its conflict with the Right to Equality enshrined in the Indian Constitution. Kerala has also initiated another legal challenge against the CAA rules.Owaisi, in his plea to the Supreme Court, underscored concerns over the discriminatory nature of the CAA and its potential implications for the Muslim community, particularly in conjunction with the National Register of Citizens (NRC).The Central government has consistently defended the CAA, emphasizing that it upholds the country’s legal, democratic, and secular principles. However, the law’s implementation in March 2024, five years after its passage, triggered widespread protests and intensified scrutiny across India.The CAA, amending the Citizenship Act of 1955, provides an expedited pathway to Indian citizenship for migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan belonging to specific religious communities, who entered India on or before December 31, 2014, due to religious persecution in their home countries.