Emad Ahmed says he is terrified by the rise of  facial recognition surveillance in India. Since December, the 26-year-old has been taking part in nationwide protests against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s controversial new  citizenship law that has fuelled  anxiety over discrimination of Muslims. 

The ruling Bharatiya Janata party has used what critics say are  authoritarian tactics to contain the unrest, from mass detentions to suspending mobile networks and bans on rallies. 

Mr Ahmed, a masters student in gender studies, says police are also relying on footage from ubiquitous cameras and drones to identify and intimidate people demonstrating against the  Hindu nationalist policies of the BJP.