Citizenship path to be eased for 6 minority groups from 3 nations

Citizenship path to be eased for 6 minority groups from 3 nations

Subject: Polity

Context:

• The Centre is all set to ease the citizenship process for minorities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who entered India on valid documents, but whose passports and visas have since expired.

About the news

• The Indian government is looking forward to easing the grant of citizenship to members of 6 minority communities from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh whose passports and visas have ceased to be valid during their stay in India.
• The citizenship portal will be revamped to accept passports and visas with expired validityas supporting documents for processing the citizenship application of Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis, Christians, Buddhists, and Jains from the three countries.
• Currently, the portal accepts expired passports only for those Hindu and Sikh applicants from Pakistan and Afghanistan who entered India before December 31, 2009.
• In 2015, the Citizenship Rules were amended to legalize the stay of migrants belonging to six communities who entered India on or before December 31, 2014.
• They were exempted from the provisions of the Passport Act and the Foreigners Act even as their passports expired.

Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) 2019 Status:

• The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019 is yet to come into force as the rules that govern the law are not yet notified.
• The implementation of CAA would have helped in fast-tracking the application of the documented minority migrants as it reduces the mandatory requirement of an 11-year aggregate stay in India to five years, to be eligible for citizenship.
• According to a report (2021-22), nearly 1414 members of the minority groups from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh were granted citizenship from April to December 2021.

The Citizenship Act, 1955

• The Citizenship Act, 1955 provides for the acquisition and determination of Indian citizenship.
• There are four ways in which Indian citizenship can be acquired: birth, descent, registration and naturalisation.
• The provisions are listed under the Citizenship Act, 1955.
• By Birth:
  • Every person born in India on or after 26.01.1950 but before 01.07.1987 is an Indian citizen irrespective of the nationality of his/her parents.
  • Every person born in India between 01.07.1987 and 02.12.2004 is a citizen of India given either of his/her parents is a citizen of the country at the time of his/her birth.
  • Every person born in India on or after 3.12.2004 is a citizen of the country given both his/her parents are Indians or at least one parent is a citizen and the other is not an illegal migrant at the time of birth.
• By Registration:
  • Citizenship can also be acquired by registration. Some of the mandatory rules are:
  • A person of Indian origin who has been a resident of India for 7 years before applying for registration.
  • A person of Indian origin who is a resident of any country outside undivided India.
  • A person who is married to an Indian citizen and is ordinarily resident for 7 years before applying for registration.
  • Minor children of persons who are citizens of India.
• By Descent:
  • A person born outside India on or after January 26, 1950 is a citizen of India by descent if his/her father was a citizen of India by birth.
  • A person born outside India on or after December 10, 1992, but before December 3, 2004 if either of his/her parent was a citizen of India by birth.
  • If a person born outside India or or after December 3, 2004 has to acquire citizenship, his/her parents have to declare that the minor does not hold a passport of another country and his/her birth is registered at an Indian consulate within one year of birth.
• By Naturalisation:
  • A person can acquire citizenship by naturalisation if he/she is ordinarily resident of India for 12 years (throughout 12 months preceding the date of application and 11 years in the aggregate) and fulfils all qualifications in the third schedule of the Citizenship Act.
  • The Act does not provide for dual citizenship or dual nationality.
  • It only allows citizenship for a person listed under the provisions above ie: by birth, descent, registration or naturalisation.