Introduction:
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- Two kinds of people –
- Citizens: full members of Indian state
- Aliens: citizens of some other state, further classified into-
- Friendly aliens– subject of the countries having cordial relations with India
- Enemy aliens– subject of the countries at war with India.
- The rights provided to citizens but denied to aliens includeArticle 15, 16, 19, 29, 30, Right to vote and contest elections, right to hold certain public offices.
- In India both a citizen by birth as well as naturalised citizen are eligible for the office of President while in USA, only a citizen by birth can hold the office of President.
- Two kinds of people –
Constitutional provisions:
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- The Constitution contains neither permanent nor elaborate provisions about citizenship.
- The parliament has enacted the Citizenship Act (1995) for the same.
- It provides for 4 categories of persons who became citizens of India at its commencement:
| Article 5- Citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution | At the commencement of this Constitution, every person who has his domicile in the territory of India and— a) who was born in the territory of India; or b) either of whose parents was born in the territory of India; or c) who has been ordinarily resident in the territory of India for not less than five years immediately preceding such commencement, shall be a citizen of India. |
| Article 6 - Rights of citizenship of certain persons who have migrated to India from Pakistan | a person who has migrated to the territory of India from the territory now in Pakistan shall be deemed to be a citizen of India at the commencement of this Constitution if— a) he or either of his parents or any of his grandparents was born in India. b) (i) in the case where such person has so migrated before the 19July, 1948, he has been ordinarily resident in the territory of India since the date of his migration, or (ii) in the case where such person has so migrated on or after the 19July, 1948, he has been registered as a citizen of India by an officer appointed in that behalf by the Government of the Dominion of India on an application made by him therefor to such officer before the commencement of this Constitution. Provided that no person shall be so registered unless he has been resident in the territory of India for at least six months immediately preceding the date of his application. |
| Article 7 -Rights of citizenship of certain migrants to Pakistan | a person who has after 1 March 1947, migrated from the territory of India to the territory of Pakistan, but later returned to India for resettlement could become an Indian citizen. For this, he had to be resident in India for six months preceding the date of his application for registration. |
| Article 8 -Rights of citizenship of certain persons of Indian origin residing outside India | any person who or either of whose parents or any of whose grand-parents was born in India and who is ordinarily residing in any country outside India shall be deemed to be a citizen of India if he has been registered as a citizen of India by the diplomatic or consular representative of India in the country where he is for the time being residing on an application made by him therefor to such diplomatic or consular representative, whether before or after the commencement of this Constitution. It covers the overseas Indians who wish to acquire India citizenship. |
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- Other constitutional provisions with respect to citizenship are:
| Article 9 -Persons voluntarily acquiring citizenship of a foreign State not to be citizens | No person shall be a citizen of India or be deemed to be a citizen of India, if he has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of any foreign State. |
| Article 10 - Continuance of the rights of citizenship | Every person who is or is deemed to be a citizen of India, subject to the provisions of any law that may be made by Parliament, continue to be such citizen. |
| Article 11 - Parliament to regulate the right of citizenship by law | Parliament shall have the power to make any provision with respect to the acquisition and termination of citizenship and all other matters relating to citizenship. |
Citizenship Act, 1955
It provides 5 ways of acquiring citizenship and 3 ways of losing citizenship:
| 5 ways of acquiring citizenship | 3 ways of losing citizenship |
|---|---|
| • By Birth • By descent • By Registration • By Naturalisation • By Incorporation of Territory | • By Renunciation • By Termination • By Deprivation |
Citizenship Amendment Act 2019
| Criticism of CAA | Arguments in favour |
|---|---|
| • Against Right to Equality (Article 15)- exclusion of muslims • Exclusionary nature- countries that share land border like Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar excluded and only religious persecution considered. • Impact on Women- Difficulty in furnishing documents due to early marriage, poor literacy etc. • Impact on indigenous population: Impact demography and identity of smaller states. E.g. objections in Northeast due to this. | • Citizenship is a part of nation’s sovereign space- David John Hopkins vs. Union of India (1997). • Focus on only 3 countries is because of their civilisational ties with India. • It doesn't contradict the Assam Accord's provisions but rather adds a layer to India's citizenship policies on a national level. |
Should India have dual citizenship?
| Benefits | Drawbacks | Case studies |
|---|---|---|
| • Increased accessibility to multiple countries • Expand foreign policy • Increase in India’s global influence • Political participation- Indians abroad will get a stake in its development. • Economic empowerment- boost to travel and tourism industry. | • Security challenge- foreign citizens in positions of policymaking and power (External Affair Minister, S Jaishankar) • Economic challenge- Complexity of legal and tax issues • Obligations to multiple countries • Identity issues- social and cultural | • Bangladesh- “dual nationality certificate”-control who gets dual citizenship and under what circumstances. • Brazilians can acquire another country’s passport but they must enter and exit Brazil only on the Brazilian passport. • Pakistan- allows dual citizenship of only 16 countries, doesn’t let dual citizens run for public office or join military. |
