Actors Sharad Kelkar and Gul Panag have recently expressed their views on the Citizenship Amendment Act.

Speaking about the protests against CAA and NRC, Gul Panag told The Quint, “The first thing that we have to accept is that the Bill has been passed by both the Houses of Parliament. In one of the Houses there is a clear majority, so there’s no room for discussion. In the Upper House too, the alliance partners and other parties have also supported the Bill, so it has been passed there also. Second is the right to protest, which is the right to expression guaranteed in the Constitution of India. It is also intrinsic to a democracy and all protests are politically motivated.”

Gul Panag said that while protests are a crucial part of engagement, she is against violence, stone-pelting and damage to public property. “Lastly, the most important question is whether this Act goes against what is written in the Constitution. That is an answer only a competent court can give,” she said.

Echoing Panag’s views, Sharad Kelkar also said that he is against violence. “No student would want to choose the path of violence. There is some mix-up happening and then it turns to a violent protest. There are some people who are in favour of CAA and some against. The latter have full right to protest and they are doing it peacefully. Mumbai showed how to protest,” he said.

The actor said that it’s the taxpayers’ money that’s being destroyed when public property is vandalised. “Secondly, I feel that hearing of petitions should be fast-tracked to prevent more violence.”

As for migration, Kelkar said that there should be a strict law to prevent more people from coming into the country which is already overpopulated.