The Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019

Lok Sabha has passed the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019 (CAB) which seeks to provide citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Parsis, Buddhists and Christians who migrated from countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan due to persecutions, to India till the end of 2014. It modifiess the Citizenship Act 1955, the Passport Act 1920 and the Foreigners Act 1946 for implementation of its provisions.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 gives opportunities to the non-Muslim refugees from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan to gain citizenship in India. The above legislation would be applicable to the groups who arrived in India on or before December 31, 2014. The Bill states that on acquiring citizenship in India:

(i) Such persons shall be deemed to be citizens of India from the date of their entry into India.
(ii) All legal proceedings against them in respect of their illegal migration or citizenship will be closed.

According to the existing laws, the Indian citizenship is granted to a person who is either born in India or if he/she is residing in the country for a minimum of 11 years.

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The Bill also makes amendments to provisions related to OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) cardholders. A foreigner may register as an OCI under the 1955 Act provided they are of Indian origin (e.g., former citizen of India or their descendants) or the spouse of a person of Indian origin. This will empower them with benefits such as the right to travel to India, work in India as well as study in India. The Bill modifies the Act and allows the scrapping of OCI registration of the person if the person has not complied with any law notified by the central government.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 also exempts certain tribal areas included in the 6th Schedule. The Bill states that the provisins on citizenship for illegal migrants will not be applicable to the tribal areas of Meghalaya, Assam, Mizoram, or Tripura, as included in the 6th Schedule to the Constitution. These tribal areas include Karbi Anglong of Assam, Garo Hills of Meghalaya, Chakma District of Mizoram, and Tripura Tribal Areas District. The citizenship provisions will also not apply to the areas under the “Inner Line Permit Regime” under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873. The “Inner Line Permit” regulates the visit of Indians to the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland. Under this, it has been proposed to bring Manipur under the Inner Line Permit (ILP) regime.

The Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019 passed by Loksabha with zero abstentions was supported by 311 members while 80 members voted against it. The bill aims to protect the people who were forced to have shelter in India due to persecution on religious grounds.

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