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US President Donald Trump will be visiting India later this month, but ahead of his visit four US senators wrote to US secretary of state Mike Pompeo expressing concerns regarding the internet ban in Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370, and the preventive detention of political leaders under PSA. The senators also expressed concern over the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act that has triggered nationwide protests.
The letter by the senators, including Lindsey Graham (Republican) Todd Young (Republican) , Chris Van Hollen (Democrat) and Dick Durbin (Democrat), states that the Indian government “continues to block internet in the Valley, which has now turned into the longest ever internet shutdown by a democratic country, disrupting access to medical care, business, and education for seven million people."
President Trump and Melania Trump will arrive for a two-day India visit on 24 February, and will be visiting both New Delhi and Ahmedabad.
The letter also mentions that the Citizenship Amendment Act would give religious minorities – except Muslims – from India's neighbouring countries, namely Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, Indian citizenship in five years as opposed to the 11-year requirement.
The senators have requested Mike Pompeo for an assessment on:
This letter by senators comes at a time a second batch of foreign envoys, which includes EU members, are visiting Jammu and Kashmir as a measure by the government to display steps taken to restore normalcy in the newly created union territory.
The US administration has earlier expressed its concerns over the anti-CAA protests and the political situation in Jammu and Kashmir.
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