Why is it in the News?

More than four years after Parliament passed The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, the Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday notified the Rules to implement the law.

Context:

• The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) of 2019 amended the Citizenship Act of 1955 to provide a pathway to Indian citizenship for migrants belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, or Christian communities who entered India before December 31, 2014, from Pakistan, Afghanistan, or Bangladesh.
• The law was enacted amidst nationwide protests, particularly in Assam, and was officially notified on January 10, 2020.
• However, the implementation of the CAA was delayed due to the absence of accompanying rules and regulations.
  • To address this issue, the Union government issued an order on May 28, 2021, empowering district collectors in 13 districts with significant migrant populations to accept citizenship applications from the groups specified in the 2019 amendment.
• The CAA has been a subject of controversy and criticism, with opponents arguing that it violates the secular principles of the Indian constitution by excluding Muslims from its purview.
• Supporters of the law contend that it offers relief to persecuted minorities from neighboring countries.
• As the rules for the CAA have now been put in place, its implementation is anticipated to be a significant development in the ongoing discussions surrounding citizenship and immigration in India.

About the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) 2019:

• The Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) of 2019 is a significant amendment to India's Citizenship Act of 1955.
  • It aims to provide a pathway to citizenship for Hindu, Sikh, Parsi, Buddhist, Jain, and Christian immigrants from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who have faced religious persecution and have been residing in India without documentation.
• The CAA reduces the residency requirement for citizenship from 11 years to 5 years for eligible immigrants who entered India before December 31, 2014.
  • The Act also includes provisions for the cancellation of Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) registration in cases where the individual has violated any provision of the Citizenship Act or other applicable laws.
• The CAA applies to individuals who have been compelled to seek shelter in India due to religious persecution.
  • However, the Act does not apply to certain areas, such as regions covered by the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution (which deals with autonomous tribal-dominated regions in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram) and states with an inner-line permit regime (Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, and Mizoram).
• The implementation of the CAA has faced delays due to opposition in several states, including Assam and Tripura.
  • The Act has sparked protests and legal challenges, with critics arguing that it violates the secular principles of the Indian Constitution and excludes certain persecuted groups, such as the Rohingya from Myanmar, Tibetan Buddhists from China, and Tamils from Sri Lanka.
• The CAA has been a subject of intense debate, with supporters claiming it offers relief to persecuted minorities and opponents asserting that it discriminates against Muslims and undermines India's secular fabric.
  • The Supreme Court is currently considering multiple petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the CAA.

Citizenship Amendment Rules, 2024:

• The Citizenship Amendment Rules, 2024 lay out a clear process for eligible refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh to seek Indian citizenship through registration or naturalization.
  • The process begins with the submission of an application, along with an affidavit confirming the accuracy of the information provided and an affidavit from an Indian citizen vouching for the applicant's character.
• Applicants must also provide a declaration of their familiarity with one of the languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.
  • The application is to be submitted electronically to an empowered committee via a district-level committee, as notified by the central government.
  • The district-level committee, headed by a designated officer, is responsible for verifying the submitted documents and administering the oath of allegiance to the applicant.
• Supporting documents that must be provided by applicants include:
  • A passport issued by the governments of Pakistan, Afghanistan, or Bangladesh
  • A birth certificate
  • Any form of identity document
  • Land or tenancy records; or any document proving that the applicant's parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents were citizens of one of the three countries.
    • These documents remain valid even beyond their expiration dates.
• Proof of entry into India before December 31, 2014, is also required.
  • Acceptable supporting documents for this include:
  •  visa and immigration stamp
  • A registration certificate from the Foreigners Regional Registration Officer (FRRO)
  • A slip issued by the Census enumerators in India
  • A government-issued license or certificate
  • A permit in India (including a driving license
  • Aadhaar number, or ration card), or a marriage certificate issued in India.
• Once an application is approved, the applicants will be issued a digital certificate, granting them Indian citizenship.
  • These rules provide a structured pathway for eligible refugees from the specified countries to obtain citizenship in India, offering them a chance at a new beginning and a sense of belonging in their adopted homeland.

The Mains issues and challenges associated with the CAA of 2019:

• Legal challenge: The CAA has been challenged in the Supreme Court by the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and others on the grounds of discrimination and violation of fundamental rights.
• Right to equality: Critics argue that using religion as a criterion for citizenship eligibility violates Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law and equal protection under the law.
• Targeting of Muslims: Concerns have been raised that the CAA, in conjunction with the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, may disproportionately affect Muslims and lead to their exclusion from citizenship.
• Secularism: The use of religion as a basis for citizenship is seen by some as a violation of the principle of secularism, which is a fundamental feature of the Indian Constitution.
• Conflict with Assam Accord: The CAA's cutoff date for determining citizenship contradicts the Assam Accord of 1985, which set a different date for identifying foreigners in the state, leading to protests and opposition in Assam and other northeastern states.
• Widespread protests: The CAA has sparked protests across India, reflecting the complexities and sensitivities surrounding the issue of citizenship and the challenge of balancing the needs of persecuted minorities with upholding constitutional principles and addressing regional concerns.

What is the Government’s Stand?

• The government's position on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is that Muslims have been excluded from the list of "persecuted" minorities because they constitute the majority in the Islamic countries of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.
  • According to the government, the CAA aims to provide citizenship to those who have faced religious persecution in these countries.
• However, this rationale is subject to scrutiny, as there are other persecuted minorities in these countries and elsewhere who have not been included in the CAA.
  • For instance, Tamil Hindus in Sri Lanka, Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, and minority Muslim sects like Ahmadiyyas and Hazaras in Pakistan and Afghanistan also face persecution in their respective countries.
• The exclusion of these groups from the CAA raises questions about the criteria used to determine which minorities are considered persecuted and eligible for Indian citizenship under the Act.

What’s Next?

• The court will have to look into two issues:
  • Whether the special treatment given to the so-called “persecuted minorities” from the three Muslim-majority neighboring countries only is a reasonable classification under Article 14 of the constitution for granting citizenship, and
  • Whether the state is discriminating against Muslims by excluding them.
• The Supreme Court has earlier held that the law has to clear two legal hoops to pass the equality test when it is challenged on the grounds of Article 14.
  • First, any differentiation between groups of persons must be founded on an “intelligible differentia”, and
  • Second, “that differentia must have a rational nexus to the object sought to be achieved by the Act”.
• The SC can strike down a classification if it is found to be arbitrary. The court recently struck down the electoral bonds scheme on the ground that it was “manifestly arbitrary” — that is, “irrational, capricious or without an adequate determining principle”.