India police detain hundreds in Citizenship Act protests

Indian police have detained hundreds who defied a ban on protests against a controversial new citizenship law.

The ban has been imposed in parts of the capital Delhi, Uttar Pradesh state, and some areas of Karnataka state, including Bangalore city, accirding to BBC News.

It comes after days of protests across India, some of which turned violent as protesters and police clashed.

The new law offers citizenship to non-Muslim illegal immigrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

Among those detained are Ramachandra Guha, a prominent historian and outspoken critic of the government, in Bangalore; and political activist in Yogendra Yadav in Delhi.

The law - known as the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) - has sharply divided opinions in India.

The federal government, led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), says it will protect people from persecution, but critics say it's part of a "Hindu nationalist" agenda to marginalise India's more than 200 million Muslims.