Over 6 years, 243 pleas later, Supreme Court fixes CAA final hearing from May 5

The Supreme Court will begin final hearings from May 5, 2026 on 243 petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.

More than six years after protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) swept across the country, the Supreme Court on Thursday said it will commence final hearings from May 5, 2026 on over 200 petitions, including the lead plea filed by the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi issued procedural directions for the final hearing of the petitions, which have been pending since 2019–2020.

The court fixed May 5 to May 12, 2026 for hearing final arguments. The Bench said it will hear the petitioners, including the lead petitioner IUML, for one-and-a-half days. It will then grant the Centre one full day to advance its arguments. The Chief Justice said the Bench will conclude the hearing on May 12.

As per the schedule earlier indicated, petitioners will be heard during the first half of May 5 and for a further half day on May 6. The respondents are likely to be heard on May 7, with rejoinder submissions scheduled for May 12.

The Bench asked parties to file additional documents and written submissions within four weeks. It also clarified that it will first hear pleas relating to the pan-India application of the CAA and will subsequently take up petitions concerning Assam and Tripura.

The court noted that two broad sets of cases assail the CAA, one concerning Assam and Tripura, and the other covering the rest of the country. It directed nodal counsels to identify matters falling in the two groups and submit the list to the registry within two weeks. The registry will then segregate the cases and list them seriatim for final hearing in the week commencing May 5, 2026.