Demonstrators defied a ban on assembly and took to the streets in many of the country’s biggest cities as anger erupted over the law, which excludes Muslims.

Two people were killed during clashes with police in Mangalore, a city in the southern Karnataka state, where police fired warning shots and used tear gas and batons to disperse a large group of protesters.

Protesters also clashed with police in parts of Lucknow, the state capital of northern Uttar Pradesh state, where police said one person died from a gunshot fired by a demonstrator.

The protesters torched a bus, hurled rocks at police and damaged some police posts and vehicles, authorities said.