As everyone is aware, the Indian government passed the Citizenship Amendment Act in 2019, with the goal of giving persecuted minorities from nearby nations like Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan faster citizenship, with the exception of Muslims. The Citizenship Amendment Act was not put into effect at the time because of the introduction of the Corona virus (Covid-19) in India, despite the fact that this law caused a great deal of debate and protests across the country. On March 11, 2023, the center did, however, put into effect the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019. One big concern raised by this implementation is whether or not it is discriminatory in nature or serves the interests of society. In order for you to determine whether or not the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2019 should be implemented, we will attempt to explain to you in this research paper its key components as well as the modifications it has made to the Citizenship Act of 1955.
Citizenship Act, 1955
Before learning about the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2019, you should be aware of the Citizenship Act of 1955, as the latter is the one that has undergone certain modifications from the former.
The Citizenship Act of 1955 is a significant piece of legislation in India that defines who is considered a citizen of India and the processes for acquiring and losing citizenship.
Acquisition Of Citizenship
It states that the Citizenship can be acquired by-
- Birth.
- Descent.
- Registration.
- Naturalisation.
- Incorporation of territory.
- Citizenship by Birth: A person born in India on or after January 26, 1950, but before July 1, 1987, is considered a citizen by birth or if born on Or after July 1, 1987 but before commencement of Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2003, if one of their parents is a citizen of India at the time of their birth Or those born on or after the commencement of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2003, if both of his parents are citizens of India or one of whose parents is a citizen of India and the other is not an illegal migrant at the time of his birth.
- Citizenship by Descent: A person born outside India on or after January 26, 1950, but before December 10, 1992, is considered a citizen by descent if their father was a citizen of India at the time of their birth. For those born on or after December 10, 1992, citizenship by descent is determined based on whether one or both parents are citizens of India (subject to its proviso)
- Citizenship by Registration: Certain categories of people, such as persons of Indian origin residing outside India, can acquire citizenship by registering themselves under specific conditions and following prescribed procedures.
- Citizenship by Naturalization: Foreigners who have resided in India for a specified period and meet certain criteria, such as good character, proficiency in one of the prescribed languages, and renunciation of citizenship in their home country, can acquire citizenship through naturalization.
- Citizenship by incorporation of territory: If any territory becomes a part of India, the Central Government may, by order notified in the Official Gazette, specify the persons who shall be citizens of India by reason of their connection with that territory; and those persons shall be citizens of India as from the date to be specified in the order.
Termination Of Citizenship
Termination of Citizenship of India can be done in the following ways –
- By Renunciation: A person who is a citizen of India and is of full age and capacity can voluntarily renounce their Indian citizenship. They must make a declaration of renunciation in the prescribed manner and form before an authority specified by the government. Once the renunciation is accepted, the individual ceases to be a citizen of India.
- Termination of Citizenship: If a citizen of India voluntarily acquires citizenship of another country, they automatically lose their Indian citizenship. This provision aims to prevent dual citizenship, as Indian law does not allow dual citizenship.
- Deprivation of Citizenship by Central Government: The Central Government has the authority to deprive any person of their Indian citizenship if it is satisfied that citizenship was obtained by fraud, false representation, or concealment of material facts. However, this action can only be taken after giving the person an opportunity to be heard.
Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019
It is an Act to further amend the Citizenship Act, 1955. The main goal of the Amendment is to provide relief to the minority communities of Pakistan, Afghanistan, or Bangladesh that were persecuted and fled to India by simplifying the process of obtaining Indian citizenship through naturalization or registration. The major amendments made are –
- In section 2(1)(b) of the Act, the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:—
“Provided that any person belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian community from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan, who entered into India on or before the 31st day of December, 2014 and who has been exempted by the Central Government by or under clause (c) of sub-section (2) of section 3 of the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920 or from the application of the provisions of the Foreigners Act, 1946 or any rule or order made thereunder, shall not be treated as illegal migrant for the purposes of this Act;”.
Explaination- “illegal migrant” Here means a foreigner who has entered into India―
- without a valid passport or other travel documents or
- (ii) with a valid passport or other travel documents but remains therein beyond the permitted period of time.
Prior to the 2019 Amendment, these individuals were regarded as undocumented immigrants and were not eligible to petition for Indian citizenship.
2. Also Section 6B was added [Special provisions as to citizenship of person covered by proviso to clause (b) of subsection (1) of section 2] it provides that—
(1) Anyone who entered India on or before December 31, 2014, and who is a member of the Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, or Christian community from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, or Pakistan, may apply for a certificate of registration or naturalization from the Central Government or any designated authority.
(2) From the date of their admission into India, any such person who receives a certificate of registration or naturalization is considered an Indian citizen.
(3) Upon granting citizenship to an individual, any pending legal action against them regarding citizenship or illegal immigration will be discontinued as of the date the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 takes effect.
(4) If a person meets all other requirements for citizenship, they will not be denied citizenship on the grounds that a proceeding is ongoing against them. Neither will the Central Government or any designated authority deny their application on this basis.
(1) The Central Government or any specified authority may grant a certificate of registration or naturalization to any person belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian community from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan, who entered into India on or before the 31st day of December, 2014.
(2) Any such person granted the certificate of registration or certificate of naturalization shall be deemed to be a citizen of India from the date of his entry into India.
(3) On and from the date of commencement of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, any proceeding pending against a person in respect of illegal migration or citizenship shall stand abated on conferment of citizenship to him:
(4) Any such person shall not be disqualified for making application for citizenship on the ground that the proceeding is pending against him and the Central Government or authority specified by it in this behalf shall not reject his application on that ground if he is otherwise found qualified for grant of citizenship.
3. In the Third Schedule to the principal Act, in clause (d), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:—
‘Provided that for the person belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian community in Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan, the aggregate period of residence or service of Government in India as required under this clause shall be read as “not less than five years” in place of “not less than eleven years”.’.
Explaination- This clause, which states that individuals who have served the Indian government for five years instead of the eleven years required for others, can obtain Indian citizenship through naturalization or registration, providing relief to those persecuted minorities in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, or Pakistan.
4.It also added clause (da) in Section 7D which says that people holding Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cards – an immigration status that allows a foreign national of Indian descent to reside and work in India permanently; nevertheless, this status can be revoked for both serious and small infractions against the law.
Why Citizenship Amendment Act is being criticized ?
Critics claim that the CAA is discriminatory since it gives illegal immigrants who are Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, or Hindus from three nearby countries—Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan—a route to Indian citizenship while excluding Muslims. The secular values established in the Indian constitution have been viewed as being at odds with this exclusion. Nonetheless, the organization explains that Muslims are excluded while others are included because they are members of the persecuted minorities that have been subjected to persecution on the basis of religion in these particular countries. In contrast to India, which is a secular nation, all of these countries have an Islamic state with a predominantly Muslim population.
Why Ahmadiyya Muslims and other persecuted Minorities are not added in the List ?
It may be because the Act’s primary goal was to grant Indian citizenship to illegal immigrants who arrived after independence and belonged to religiously persecuted minorities who were subjected to persecution because of their beliefs. Many members of these persecuted religious minorities did not enter India because they lived in the part of undivided India that is now part of modern-day Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh, and they moved to India as a result of persecution. Ahmadiyya Muslims and other persecuted minorities are members of the Muslim community, which constitutes the majority in these countries, so they are not included on the list.
Furthermore many worry that Muslims in India may be singled out and marginalized as a result of the CAA and the planned National Register of Citizens (NRC). There is concern that Muslims who cannot demonstrate their citizenship under the NRC may be considered undocumented immigrants and may be subject to deportation or become stateless. But the Act makes no mention of taking away someone’s citizenship; instead, it only gives these marginalized communities some unique protections with regard to citizenship.
Conclusion
In conclusion, we can state that if the government applies the Citizenship Amendment Act in a discriminatory way. The Act, however, simply creates a unique provision for these marginalized communities and makes no mention of or attempt to alter the process for obtaining and losing citizenship. The Hon’ble Supreme Court will have to decide whether to include that category of marginalized people on the list.
Author: Akshat Govil, a student at Aligarh Muslim University.
