India’s Supreme Court refuses to strike down citizenship law

India’s Supreme Court has sought government response to petitions filed against new citizenship legislation after it refused to stay the law that has sparked widespread opposition and protests across the country.

The top court on Wednesday gave the government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi four weeks to reply to a batch of 143 pleas challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) passed last month.

“I don’t think there is anything positive for the petitioners which happened today,” Faizan Mustafa, a constitutional expert, told Al Jazeera.

“Had there been a stay (by the court) all the protests would have come to an end today,” said Mustafa, who is vice-chancellor of NALSAR University of Law in Hyderabad.