Citizenship

Constitutional Provisions of Citizenship

▸ Part II of Indian Constitution (Articles 5-11) deals with Citizenship.
▸ Citizens are endowed with certain rights and duties that are naturally associated with their everyday lives. Citizens are different from aliens, who do not enjoy all the rights which are essential for full membership of a state.
▸ In India, there is a single citizenship i.e. citizenship of the Union of India. The Constitution (under Articles 5-8) provides for citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution for the following persons:
— Domiciled in India and born in India.
— Domiciled, not born in India but either of whose parents were born in India.
— Domiciled, not born in India but ordinarily resident for more than 5 years.
— Resident in India but migrated to Pakistan after 1st March, 1947 and later returned to India on resettlement permit.
— Resident in Pakistan but who migrated to India before 19th July ,1948 or who came after that date but had resident in India for more than 6 months and got registered in the prescribed manner.
— Resident outside India but who or either of whose parents or grandparents were born in India.

Citizenship Act, 1955

▸ The Citizenship Act, (1955) provides for acquisition and loss of citizenship after the commencement of the Constitution. This Act has been amended so far five times in 1986, 1992, 2003, 2005 and 2015.

Acquisition of Citizenship

▸ The act provides for the acquisition of Indian citizenship after the commencement of the Constitution in five ways, i.e. birth, descent registration, naturalisation and incorporation of territory.
By Birth
▸ Every person born in India on or after 26th January, 1950 shall be a citizen of India by law of soil, provided either or both of his/her parents are citizens of India at the time of his/her birth. But this law does not apply where his/her father is a diplomat of any other country or is an enemy alien at the time of his/her birth.
By Descent
▸ Broadly, a person born outside India on or after 26th January, 1950, is a citizen of India by descent if his/her either of the parents is a citizen of India at the time of that person's birth.
By Registration
▸ The prescribed authority may, on application, register as a citizen of India, any person who is not a citizen by virtue of Constitution or the provisions of the Citizenship Act.
This mode of acquiring citizenship is available to any of the following categories:
— Persons of Indian origin who are ordinarily resident in India for 7 years immediately before making an application for registration.
— Persons of Indian origin who are ordinarily resident in any country or place outside undivided India.
— Women who are or have been married to citizens of India. Minor children of persons who are citizens of India.
By Naturalisation
▸ Citizenship by naturalisation can be acquired by making an application in the prescribed manner.
The qualifications for naturalisation are the following
— He must be a person of full age and capacity.
— He must not be a citizen of a country where Indian citizens are prevented from becoming citizens by naturalisation. He has renounced the citizenship of the other country.
— He has either resided in India or has been in Government service for 12 months before the date of making the application for naturalisation or during 7 years prior to these 12 months, he has resided or has been in the Government service for not less than 4 years.
— He must take an oath of allegiance.
— He is of a good character.
— He has an adequate knowledge of a language recognised in the eight schedule to the Constitution.
By Incorporation of Territories
▸ If any new territory becomes a part of India, after a popular verdict, the Government of India shall specify the person of that territory to be the citizen of India.

Loss of Citizenship

▸ The Citizenship Act, 1955 also lays down three modes by which an Indian citizen may lose his/ her citizenship. These are renunciation, termination and deprivation:
Renunciation
▸ It is a voluntary act by which a person, after acquiring the citizenship of another country, gives up his Indian citizenship. This provision is subject to certain conditions.
Termination
▸ Takes place by operation of law when an Indian citizen voluntarily acquires the citizenship of another country. He automatically ceases to be an Indian citizen (Article 9).
Deprivation
▸ It is a compulsory termination of the citizenship of India obtained by registration or naturalisation, by the Government of India, on charges of using fraudulent means to acquire citizenship.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2015

The Act seeks to amend Citizenship Act, 1955. The major provisions of the Act are as follows:
▸ In case of citizenship by naturalisation, the Act allows the Central Government to relax the requirement of 12 months stay or in service of government, if special circumstances exist. Relaxation upto 30 days may be permitted.
▸ The Act provides certain additional grounds for registering an overseas citizen of India card.
▸ The Act also introduces a new provision which allows the Central Government to register a person as an overseas citizen of India cardholder even, if she does not satisfy any of the listed qualifications, if special case exists.
▸ The Act provides for merger of overseas citizen of India and persons of Indian origin scheme. Thus, the Central Government may notify that persons of Indian origin cardholders shall be considered to be overseas citizen of India cardholders from a specified date.
▸ The Act also allows Central Government to cancel the overseas citizenship of India card where it is obtained by the spouse of an Indian citizen or overseas citizen of India cardholder if
— marriage is dissolved by a court or
— the spouse enters into another marriage even while the first marriage has not been dissolved.

Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019

This Bill will amend the Citizenship Act, 1955. The bill was introduced in Lok Sabha on 8th January, 2019. The Bill seeks to facilitate acquisition of citizenship by 6 identified minority communities namely Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhist, Christans, Parsis from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh who came to India before 31st December 2014. This Act is not confined to the state of Assam. The Bill will apply to all States and Union Territories of the country. The Act will provide the assistance to persecuted migrants who have come through the western borders of country to states like Gujarat, Rajasthan, Delhi and other states.

Nation Register of Citizen

The National Register of Citizens (NRC) is a register containing names of all genuine Indian citizens residing in India. The register was first prepared and its updation process was put into action after the 1951 Census of India. The NRC is now being updated in Assam to include the names of those residents (or other descendants) who appear in the NRC, 1951 or in any of the Electoral Rolls up to the midnight of 24th March, 1971 or in one of the other admissible documents issued up to mid-night of 24th March, 1971, which would prove their presence in Assam or in any part of India on or before 24th March, 1971. The updation process of NRC started in the year 2013 under the strict monitoring and supervision of the Supreme Court of India. On mid-night of 31st Dec, 2017, Part Draft NRC was released and subsequently on 30th July, 2018, the complete Draft of NRC was released.

Rights and Duties of Citizens

▸ Rights provided to citizens but not to aliens:
— Rights under Articles 15, 16, 19, 29 and 30.
— Right to vote, contest elections and hold public office.
▸ Article 16 and Article 326 are not available to even Overseas Citizens of India (OCI).
▸ Recently, the Government of India gave Non-Residents of India (NRIs) the Right to Vote. However, voting through postal ballots is not allowed. An NRI has to be present in the constituency, where he is registered as a voter, on the day of polling.
▸ Constitutional post can only be held by citizens of India and neither foreigners nor OCI/PIO.
▸ Duties of citizen but not of alien
— to pay tax, respect national symbol, defend the country etc.
▸ In India, both citizen by birth and naturalisation are eligible for office of President. In USA only citizen by birth are eligible. Enemy aliens do not enjoy protection against arrest and detentions (Article 22).

Indian Diaspora

▸ The Indian Diaspora is a generic term to describe the people who migrated from territories that are correctly within the borders of the Republic of India. It also refers to their descendants.
▸ According to the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, India has the second largest diaspora in the world overseas Chinese.
▸ The overseas Indian Community estimated at over 25 million is spread across every major region in the world.

Non-Resident Indians (NRIs)

▸ NRIs are those who have not acquired foreign citizenship but are ordinarily living in foreign countries and having Indian passport.
Voting Rights to NRI
▸ In year 2012, on occasion of 10th PBD, Indian Government allowed Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) to vote and participate in election process, after registration of overseas electors under Representation of People Act, 1950.
▸ In January, 2015, government accepted the recommendations of Election Commission's empowered committee to allow e-ballots for NRIs.

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas

▸ Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) is celebrated on 9th January every year in India, to mark the contribution of overseas Indian community in the development of India.
▸ The day commemorates the arrival of Mahatma Gandhi in India from South Africa in 1915.
▸ Started in 2003, Pravasi Bharatiya Conference is sponsored by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, Government of India the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Ministry of Development of North-Eastern Region.
15th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, 2019
The 15th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) was held at Varanasi in January 2019. The theme of the PBD 2019 was 'Role of Indian Diaspora in Building a New India'. Its Chief Guest for this year's PBD was Prime Minister of Mauritius, Pravind Jugnauth.
Comparison of People of Indian Origin (PIO) and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) Card Holders

PIO Card OCI Card Who is eligible Any person
(i) Who at any time held an Indian passport or (ii) He or either of his parents or grandparents or great grandparents were born in and permanently resident in India as defined by GoI Act, 1935 provided neither was at any time a citizen of Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Bhutan , China, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
(iii) He/She is spouses of above mentioned citizens. A foreign national who was eligible to become citizen of India on 26th January, 1950 or was citizen any time after or belonged to territory that became a part of India after 15th August, 1947 and his/her children, grandchildren provided his/her country allows dual citizenship in some form or other under local laws. He is not eligible for being citizen of Pakistan or Bangladesh. Benefits • Can visit India without visa for 15 years from date of issue of PIO card.
• One time registration with police authority if stay exceeds 180 days.
• Parity with NRIs except in matters relating to acquisition of agricultural plantation properties.
• No parity in sphere of political rights. • A multiple entry, multipurpose life long visa for visiting India.
• Exemption from registration with local police authority.
• Parity with NRIs except in matters relating to acquisition of agricultural plantation properties.
• No parity in sphere of political rights.

The PIO card and OCI card has been merged with if fell from 9th January, 2015 and now only one OCI card with enhanced benefits is in existence.