Understanding Citizenship and Rights in India

My name is Amna and I am an Assistant Professor of Law at Christ Dean to be University, Pune Lavasa campus. So today's topic of discussion is Citizenship and Rights of Citizens of India. Citizenship is a legal and social status that defines an individual's membership in a specific nation or political entity. It encompasses both rights and responsibilities, shaping the relationship between individuals and the communities to which they belong. Rooted in concepts of identity and belonging, citizenship plays a crucial role in modern societies, influencing everything from political participation to social integration. Understanding the dynamics of citizenship is essential for comprehending the rights, duties and shared connections that binds individuals within a particular geopolitical context. After 3rd June 1947, when Lord Mountbatten announced his intention to scrap the cabinet mission plan and introduced Indian Independence Act 1947. It was decided that British India will be divided into two nations, India and Pakistan. The constitution of India does not define the term citizenship. Citizenship is the relationship of an individual with the nation state. Citizenship is the status of a person recognized under law as being a legal member of a sovereign state or belonging to a nation. In India, Articles 5 to 11 of the Constitution deals with the concept of citizenship. The term citizenship entails the enjoyment of full membership of any state in which a citizen has civil and political rights. Whenever we discuss about population of our country or about people of India, In our constitution we use these three terms First, person Second, citizens and third, minorities These three terms in reference to people of India are used in our constitution First, person All basic rights such as right to equality, right to life, etc. are given to all persons in India under part 3 of the Indian constitution Second, citizenship Right against discrimination was given only to the citizens such as Article 15, Article 16 and Article 19 etc. Third, minorities. Some specific rights which are defined in Article 29 and Article 30 are given only to minorities in India in addition to other rights under Article 14 and Article 15. Constitutional provisions that deal with citizenship are given under Part 2 of the Indian Constitution. The following part carries six articles starting from Article 5 to Article 11. Article 5 states that citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution. This article talks about citizenship for people at the commencement of the Constitution i.e. 26 January 1950. Under this citizenship is conferred upon those persons who have their domicile in Indian territory and who was born in Indian territory or who was born in the Indian territory. whose either parent was born in Indian Territory or who has ordinarily been a resident of India for not less than five years immediately preceding the commencement of the Constitution. Article 6 states that citizenship of certain persons who have migrated from Pakistan. Any person who has migrated from Pakistan shall be a citizen of India at the time of the commencement of the Constitution if he or either of his parents or any of his grandparents were born in India as given in the Government of India Act of 1935 and in case such a person has migrated before July 19, 1948 and has been ordinarily resident in India since his migration or in case such a person has migrated after July 19, 1948 and he has been registered as a citizen of India by any officer appointed in that behalf by the government of the Dominion of India or on an application made by him thereof to such an officer before the commencement of the Constitution, provided that no person shall be so registered unless he has been resident in India for at least six months immediately preceding the date of his application. Section 7 states that citizenship of certain migrants to Pakistan. This article deals with the rights of people who have migrated to Pakistan after March 1, 1947 but subsequently returned to India. Article 8 states that citizenship of certain persons of Indian origin residing outside India. This article deals with the rights of people of Indian origin residing outside India for purposes of employment, marriage and education. Article 9 talks about people voluntarily acquiring citizenship of a foreign country will not be citizens of India. Article 10 talks about any person who is considered to be a citizen of India under any of the provisions of this part shall continue to be citizens and will also be subject to any law made by the Parliament. Article 11 states that Parliament to regulate the right of citizenship by law. The Parliament has the right to make any provision concerning the acquisition and termination of citizenship and any other matter relating to citizenship. Now I'll be talking about accusation of citizenship under the Citizenship Act 1955. The Citizenship Act provides five ways to acquire citizenship of India. These are birth, descent, registration, naturalization and incorporation of territory. Birth, section 3. Any person born in India from the commencement of the constitution that is 26 January 1950 will be considered as an Indian citizen till the date of 1st July 1987 irrespective of their nationality of their parents. Before 1st July 1987, it was observed even the children of refugees and illegal immigrants from neighbouring countries who came to India were automatically given the Indian citizenship which had become a huge problem and hence few changes were made stating that any person who is born in India after 1st July 1987 till 3rd December 2003 will get this Indian citizenship if either of his or her parents are born in India. The problems again could not be solved so a new amendment took place which stated that anyone who is born after 3rd December 2003 will get the citizenship of India only when first, both of his or her parents are born in India, second or either of the parents is Indian but the other one is not an illegal immigrant, third however the children of a foreign diplomat posted in India and enemy aliens cannot acquire citizenship by birth in India. Dissent, Section 4. Any person born outside India after the commencement of the Constitution but before 10th December 1992 will be considered as an Indian citizen if his father was an Indian citizen at the time of birth. A person born on or after 10 December 1992 till 3 December 2003 will be considered as Indian citizen if either of his parents were an Indian citizen at the time of his birth. From 3 December 2004 onwards, a person would not be considered as an Indian citizen unless his birth is registered with Indian councillor or diplomat of that country or with the permission of the government. Registration Section 5. The central government may on an application register as a citizen of India any person not being an illegal immigrant if he belongs to any of the following categories. Namely, first a person of Indian origin who is ordinarily resident in India for 7 years before making an application for registration. Second, A person of Indian origin who is ordinarily resident in any country or place outside undivided India. Third, a person who is married to a citizen of India and is ordinarily resident in India for 7 years before making an application for registration. Fourth, minor children of persons who are citizens of India. Fifth, a person of full age and capacity. whose parents are registered as citizens of India. Sixth, a person of full age and capacity who or either of his parents was an earlier citizen of independent India and is ordinarily resident in India. for 12 months immediately before making an application for registration. 7. A person of full age and capacity who has been registered as an overseas citizen of India, cardholder for 5 years and who is ordinarily resident in India for 12 months before making an application for registration. Section 6 Naturalization. The central government may on an application grant a certificate of naturalization to any person not being an illegal immigrant if he possesses the following qualifications. First, he is not a subject or citizen of any country where citizens of India are prevented from becoming subjects or citizens of that country by naturalization. Second, he is a citizen of any country he undertakes to renounce the citizenship of the country. that country in the event of his application for Indian citizenship being accepted. Third, he has either resided in India or has been in the service of the government in India or partly the one and partly the other throughout the period of 12 months immediately preceding the date of application. Fourth, during the 14 years immediately preceding the set period of 12 months, he has either resided in India or been in the service of the government in India or partly the one and partly the other for periods amounting in the aggregate to not less than eleven years. Fifth, he is of good character. Sixth, he has advocate knowledge of the language specified in the age schedule of the constitution. Seventh, that in this event the certificate of naturalization can be granted to him if he intends to reside in India or enter into or continue in service under a government in India or under any international organization of which India is a member or under a society, company or body of persons established in India. Section 7. By incorporation of territory. When any territory outside India becomes part of India then their citizen automatically becomes the citizen of India from the notified date. Example, When Goa and Pondicherry became part of India, the citizens automatically acquired the citizenship of India. Loss of Citizenship The Citizenship Act, 1955 provides for three ways for the termination of citizenship. These three ways are renunciation, termination and deprivation. First, by renunciation. Section 8 Any person with majority and capacity can declare to renounce. His citizenship. Upon such registration of request, the person shall cease to be a citizen of India. 2. By termination. Section 9. When a person has acquired citizenship of any other countries, Indian citizenship will forfeit automatically. 3. By deprivation. Section 10. It is compulsory termination of Indian citizenship by the central government if citizens have opted for it. obtained, citizenship by fraud. 2. Citizens have shown disloyalty to the Constitution of India. 3. Citizens have unlawfully traded or communicated with the enemy during a war. The citizen has within five years after registration or naturalization been imprisoned in any country for two years and citizen has been ordinarily resident out of India for seven years continuously. Rights of Citizens The Constitution of India grants some rights solely to Indian citizens and are equally denied to foreign nations. The following rights are Article 15. Right against discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. Article 16. Right to equality of opportunity in the matter of public employment. Article 19. Right to freedom of speech and expression, assembly, association, movement, resident and profession. Article 29 and Article 30, cultural and educational rights. Right to vote in elections to the Lok Sabha and state legislative assembly. Sixth, right to contest for the membership of the parliament and the state legislature. Seventh, eligibility to hold certain public offices that is President of India, Vice President of India, judges of the Supreme Court and high courts. Governor of States, Attorney General of India and Advocate General of States. 8. These are the rights that are available to Indian citizens but owing to this there are some obligations on the citizens also. These are things like paying taxes to the government on time, respecting the national flag and things in the national emblem and defending the country when required to do so. So now my question is, is dual citizenship permitted in India? Dual citizenship stands for acquiring citizenship of two different nations at the same time. There are some countries in the world which provide for this. but unfortunately India is not one of them. India provides for single citizenship implying one has to leave his original citizenship to gain Indian citizenship or to acquire citizenship of any other nation one has to terminate Indian citizenship or it will be automatically terminated. The rationale behind not providing dual citizenship is that single citizenship is considered as a commitment to the nation and with dual citizenship all the faith and loyalty vanishes away. In USA, each person is not only a citizen of USA but also of the particular state to which he belongs. Thus, he she owes it commitment to both and enjoys dual sets of rights. One set is conferred by the national government and another by the state government. Thus, this system creates the problem. Who are overseas citizens? Overseas citizenship was introduced in response to dual citizenship in 2005. It grants overseas citizens to work and live in India indefinitely. The following persons are considered for overseas citizenship. First, a person who was a citizen of India at the time or at any time after the commencement of the constitution i.e. 26 January 1950. Second, A person who was eligible to become a citizen of India on 26 January 1950. Third, a person who belonged to a territory that became part of India after 15 August 1947. Fourth, a person who is a child or a grandchild or great-grandchild of such a citizen. Fifth, a person who is a minor child of such persons mentioned above. 6. A person who is a minor child and whose parents are citizens of India and one of the parents is a citizen of India. 7. Spouse of foreign origin of a citizen of India or spouse of a foreign origin of an overseas citizen of an Indian cardholder registered under Section 7A of the Citizenship Act, 1955. 8. Whose marriage has been registered and subsisted for a continuous period for not less than two years immediately preceding the presentation of the application now what is the difference between nationality citizenship overseas citizenship and non-resident citizenship nationality is the status of belonging to a particular nation the nationality of the person is determined from where he belongs it is more of a sociological concept determined by ethnic and racial groups and it can never be taken away from a person and forms a person's identity. There is no relation of nationality with the rights conferred to the person. Citizenship is more of a legal concept and is granted by the government of that nation. Unlike nationality, it can be changed or taken away from a person. The person is given rights by its own government. by the virtue of citizenship. While a person can belong to one nationality, but he can acquire citizenship of several nations at the same time. There are the persons who have some exclusive rights that can be enjoyed by them and these are their privileges owing to the citizens of that nation. Overseas citizenship is in replacement of dual citizenship and is a unique concept to India. Unlike dual citizenship, it is available to only certain category of people who had earlier relation to India or their parents or grandparents. These are the rights available to overseas citizens but they are not as exclusive as they are to ordinary citizens. Non-resident citizenship is given to the people who are Indian citizens but owing to some work or other reasons, these people are not living in India. But these people have all rights that resides with the ordinary citizen of India. I would like to conclude by saying Citizenship stands as a dynamic and foundational concept that forms the bedrock of modern societies. It goes beyond a mere legal status, encapsulating a sense of identity, belonging and shared responsibility among individuals within a specific nation or political entity. It is important to define citizenship because the people who are citizens of India will get many benefits and protections under various articles of our constitution. The citizens of a country are full potential members of a state, whose permanent devotion is to the state. They also enjoy various rights. A person can be given citizenship, but his or her citizenship can be revoked too. The Constitution of India has given power to Parliament to make laws regarding citizenship under Article 11. Citizenship grants both rights and duties, shaping the intricate relationship between the individuals and their communities. As global dynamics evolve, discussions around citizenship continue to expand, encompassing issues of global diversity and the rights of various groups. Ultimately, a nuanced understanding of citizenship is crucial for navigating the complexities of contemporary social political and economic landscapes, fostering a sense of community and contributing to the fabric of a coercive and participatory society. Thank you.

It encompasses both rights and responsibilities, shaping the relationship between individuals and the communities to which they belong. Rooted in concepts of identity and belonging, citizenship plays a crucial role in modern societies, influencing everything from political participation to social integration. Understanding the dynamics of citizenship is essential for comprehending the rights, duties and shared connections that binds individuals within a particular geopolitical context. After 3rd June 1947, when Lord Mountbatten announced his intention to scrap the cabinet mission plan and introduced Indian Independence Act 1947. It was decided that British India will be divided into two nations, India and Pakistan. The constitution of India does not define the term citizenship.

Citizenship is the relationship of an individual with the nation state. Citizenship is the status of a person recognized under law as being a legal member of a sovereign state or belonging to a nation. In India, Articles 5 to 11 of the Constitution deals with the concept of citizenship.

The term citizenship entails the enjoyment of full membership of any state in which a citizen has civil and political rights. Whenever we discuss about population of our country or about people of India, In our constitution we use these three terms First, person Second, citizens and third, minorities These three terms in reference to people of India are used in our constitution First, person All basic rights such as right to equality, right to life, etc. are given to all persons in India under part 3 of the Indian constitution Second, citizenship Right against discrimination was given only to the citizens such as Article 15, Article 16 and Article 19 etc. Third, minorities. Some specific rights which are defined in Article 29 and Article 30 are given only to minorities in India in addition to other rights under Article 14 and Article 15. Constitutional provisions that deal with citizenship are given under Part 2 of the Indian Constitution. The following part carries six articles starting from Article 5 to Article 11. Article 5 states that citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution.

This article talks about citizenship for people at the commencement of the Constitution i.e. 26 January 1950. Under this citizenship is conferred upon those persons who have their domicile in Indian territory and who was born in Indian territory or who was born in the Indian territory. whose either parent was born in Indian Territory or who has ordinarily been a resident of India for not less than five years immediately preceding the commencement of the Constitution. Article 6 states that citizenship of certain persons who have migrated from Pakistan.

Any person who has migrated from Pakistan shall be a citizen of India at the time of the commencement of the Constitution if he or either of his parents or any of his grandparents were born in India as given in the Government of India Act of 1935 and in case such a person has migrated before July 19, 1948 and has been ordinarily resident in India since his migration or in case such a person has migrated after July 19, 1948 and he has been registered as a citizen of India by any officer appointed in that behalf by the government of the Dominion of India or on an application made by him thereof to such an officer before the commencement of the Constitution, provided that no person shall be so registered unless he has been resident in India for at least six months immediately preceding the date of his application. Section 7 states that citizenship of certain migrants to Pakistan. This article deals with the rights of people who have migrated to Pakistan after March 1, 1947 but subsequently returned to India.

Article 8 states that citizenship of certain persons of Indian origin residing outside India. This article deals with the rights of people of Indian origin residing outside India for purposes of employment, marriage and education. Article 9 talks about people voluntarily acquiring citizenship of a foreign country will not be citizens of India.

Article 10 talks about any person who is considered to be a citizen of India under any of the provisions of this part shall continue to be citizens and will also be subject to any law made by the Parliament. Article 11 states that Parliament to regulate the right of citizenship by law. The Parliament has the right to make any provision concerning the acquisition and termination of citizenship and any other matter relating to citizenship. Now I'll be talking about accusation of citizenship under the Citizenship Act 1955. The Citizenship Act provides five ways to acquire citizenship of India. These are birth, descent, registration, naturalization and incorporation of territory.

Birth, section 3. Any person born in India from the commencement of the constitution that is 26 January 1950 will be considered as an Indian citizen till the date of 1st July 1987 irrespective of their nationality of their parents. Before 1st July 1987, it was observed even the children of refugees and illegal immigrants from neighbouring countries who came to India were automatically given the Indian citizenship which had become a huge problem and hence few changes were made stating that any person who is born in India after 1st July 1987 till 3rd December 2003 will get this Indian citizenship if either of his or her parents are born in India. The problems again could not be solved so a new amendment took place which stated that anyone who is born after 3rd December 2003 will get the citizenship of India only when first, both of his or her parents are born in India, second or either of the parents is Indian but the other one is not an illegal immigrant, third however the children of a foreign diplomat posted in India and enemy aliens cannot acquire citizenship by birth in India. Dissent, Section 4. Any person born outside India after the commencement of the Constitution but before 10th December 1992 will be considered as an Indian citizen if his father was an Indian citizen at the time of birth. A person born on or after 10 December 1992 till 3 December 2003 will be considered as Indian citizen if either of his parents were an Indian citizen at the time of his birth.

From 3 December 2004 onwards, a person would not be considered as an Indian citizen unless his birth is registered with Indian councillor or diplomat of that country or with the permission of the government. Registration Section 5. The central government may on an application register as a citizen of India any person not being an illegal immigrant if he belongs to any of the following categories. Namely, first a person of Indian origin who is ordinarily resident in India for 7 years before making an application for registration.

Second, A person of Indian origin who is ordinarily resident in any country or place outside undivided India. Third, a person who is married to a citizen of India and is ordinarily resident in India for 7 years before making an application for registration. Fourth, minor children of persons who are citizens of India.

Fifth, a person of full age and capacity. whose parents are registered as citizens of India. Sixth, a person of full age and capacity who or either of his parents was an earlier citizen of independent India and is ordinarily resident in India.

for 12 months immediately before making an application for registration. 7. A person of full age and capacity who has been registered as an overseas citizen of India, cardholder for 5 years and who is ordinarily resident in India for 12 months before making an application for registration. Section 6 Naturalization. The central government may on an application grant a certificate of naturalization to any person not being an illegal immigrant if he possesses the following qualifications.

First, he is not a subject or citizen of any country where citizens of India are prevented from becoming subjects or citizens of that country by naturalization. Second, he is a citizen of any country he undertakes to renounce the citizenship of the country. that country in the event of his application for Indian citizenship being accepted.

Third, he has either resided in India or has been in the service of the government in India or partly the one and partly the other throughout the period of 12 months immediately preceding the date of application. Fourth, during the 14 years immediately preceding the set period of 12 months, he has either resided in India or been in the service of the government in India or partly the one and partly the other for periods amounting in the aggregate to not less than eleven years. Fifth, he is of good character.

Sixth, he has advocate knowledge of the language specified in the age schedule of the constitution. Seventh, that in this event the certificate of naturalization can be granted to him if he intends to reside in India or enter into or continue in service under a government in India or under any international organization of which India is a member or under a society, company or body of persons established in India. Section 7. By incorporation of territory.

When any territory outside India becomes part of India then their citizen automatically becomes the citizen of India from the notified date. Example, When Goa and Pondicherry became part of India, the citizens automatically acquired the citizenship of India. Loss of Citizenship The Citizenship Act, 1955 provides for three ways for the termination of citizenship.

These three ways are renunciation, termination and deprivation. First, by renunciation. Section 8 Any person with majority and capacity can declare to renounce.

His citizenship. Upon such registration of request, the person shall cease to be a citizen of India. 2. By termination. Section 9. When a person has acquired citizenship of any other countries, Indian citizenship will forfeit automatically.

3. By deprivation. Section 10. It is compulsory termination of Indian citizenship by the central government if citizens have opted for it. obtained, citizenship by fraud. 2. Citizens have shown disloyalty to the Constitution of India. 3. Citizens have unlawfully traded or communicated with the enemy during a war.

The citizen has within five years after registration or naturalization been imprisoned in any country for two years and citizen has been ordinarily resident out of India for seven years continuously. Rights of Citizens The Constitution of India grants some rights solely to Indian citizens and are equally denied to foreign nations. The following rights are Article 15. Right against discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. Article 16. Right to equality of opportunity in the matter of public employment.

Article 19. Right to freedom of speech and expression, assembly, association, movement, resident and profession. Article 29 and Article 30, cultural and educational rights. Right to vote in elections to the Lok Sabha and state legislative assembly.

Sixth, right to contest for the membership of the parliament and the state legislature. Seventh, eligibility to hold certain public offices that is President of India, Vice President of India, judges of the Supreme Court and high courts. Governor of States, Attorney General of India and Advocate General of States.

8. These are the rights that are available to Indian citizens but owing to this there are some obligations on the citizens also. These are things like paying taxes to the government on time, respecting the national flag and things in the national emblem and defending the country when required to do so. So now my question is, is dual citizenship permitted in India?

Dual citizenship stands for acquiring citizenship of two different nations at the same time. There are some countries in the world which provide for this. but unfortunately India is not one of them. India provides for single citizenship implying one has to leave his original citizenship to gain Indian citizenship or to acquire citizenship of any other nation one has to terminate Indian citizenship or it will be automatically terminated.

The rationale behind not providing dual citizenship is that single citizenship is considered as a commitment to the nation and with dual citizenship all the faith and loyalty vanishes away. In USA, each person is not only a citizen of USA but also of the particular state to which he belongs. Thus, he she owes it commitment to both and enjoys dual sets of rights. One set is conferred by the national government and another by the state government.

Thus, this system creates the problem. Who are overseas citizens? Overseas citizenship was introduced in response to dual citizenship in 2005. It grants overseas citizens to work and live in India indefinitely. The following persons are considered for overseas citizenship.

First, a person who was a citizen of India at the time or at any time after the commencement of the constitution i.e. 26 January 1950. Second, A person who was eligible to become a citizen of India on 26 January 1950. Third, a person who belonged to a territory that became part of India after 15 August 1947. Fourth, a person who is a child or a grandchild or great-grandchild of such a citizen. Fifth, a person who is a minor child of such persons mentioned above. 6. A person who is a minor child and whose parents are citizens of India and one of the parents is a citizen of India.

7. Spouse of foreign origin of a citizen of India or spouse of a foreign origin of an overseas citizen of an Indian cardholder registered under Section 7A of the Citizenship Act, 1955. 8. Whose marriage has been registered and subsisted for a continuous period for not less than two years immediately preceding the presentation of the application now what is the difference between nationality citizenship overseas citizenship and non-resident citizenship nationality is the status of belonging to a particular nation the nationality of the person is determined from where he belongs it is more of a sociological concept determined by ethnic and racial groups and it can never be taken away from a person and forms a person's identity. There is no relation of nationality with the rights conferred to the person. Citizenship is more of a legal concept and is granted by the government of that nation. Unlike nationality, it can be changed or taken away from a person.

The person is given rights by its own government. by the virtue of citizenship. While a person can belong to one nationality, but he can acquire citizenship of several nations at the same time. There are the persons who have some exclusive rights that can be enjoyed by them and these are their privileges owing to the citizens of that nation.

Overseas citizenship is in replacement of dual citizenship and is a unique concept to India. Unlike dual citizenship, it is available to only certain category of people who had earlier relation to India or their parents or grandparents. These are the rights available to overseas citizens but they are not as exclusive as they are to ordinary citizens.

Non-resident citizenship is given to the people who are Indian citizens but owing to some work or other reasons, these people are not living in India. But these people have all rights that resides with the ordinary citizen of India. I would like to conclude by saying Citizenship stands as a dynamic and foundational concept that forms the bedrock of modern societies.

It goes beyond a mere legal status, encapsulating a sense of identity, belonging and shared responsibility among individuals within a specific nation or political entity. It is important to define citizenship because the people who are citizens of India will get many benefits and protections under various articles of our constitution. The citizens of a country are full potential members of a state, whose permanent devotion is to the state. They also enjoy various rights.

A person can be given citizenship, but his or her citizenship can be revoked too. The Constitution of India has given power to Parliament to make laws regarding citizenship under Article 11. Citizenship grants both rights and duties, shaping the intricate relationship between the individuals and their communities. As global dynamics evolve, discussions around citizenship continue to expand, encompassing issues of global diversity and the rights of various groups.

Ultimately, a nuanced understanding of citizenship is crucial for navigating the complexities of contemporary social political and economic landscapes, fostering a sense of community and contributing to the fabric of a coercive and participatory society. Thank you.

Transcript for:Understanding Citizenship and Rights in India

Transcript for:
Understanding Citizenship and Rights in India