Renouncement of Indian Citizenship
Source : Indian Express
GS II : Indian Polity
Overview
- Key Facts
- Citizenship
- Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019
Why in News ?
Between 2011 and 2022, close to 70,000 Indians surrendered their passports at regional passport offices (RPOs) across the country.
Key Facts
- In response to an RTI, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) provides information.
- Over 90% of the documents turned in were from eight states: Goa, Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, and Chandigarh.
- The RPO in Goa received up to 40.45% of the 69,303 passports that were turned in during this time, followed by Punjab.
- With the exception of 2012 and 2013, when Gujarat had the highest numbers, Goa has regularly led the list of states with the most passports turned in.
- Data from the MEA presented in the Lok Sabha shows that since 2011, an average of 11,422 Indians have renounced their nationality each month.
- More than 16 lakh Indians have renounced their nationality since 2011.
- According to the MEA data presented in the LokSabha shows that on an average 11,422 Indians renounced Indian Citizenship every month since 2011.
Citizenship
Acquisition of Indian Citizenship
- The Citizenship Act of 1955 prescribes five ways of acquiring citizenship:
- Citizenship conferred by birth
- Citizenship through descent
- Citizenship through registration
- Naturalization leads to citizenship.
- Territorial incorporation (by the Government of India)
- Under The Indian Citizenship Act, 1955, Persons of Indian Origin are not allowed dual citizenship. If a person has ever held an Indian passport and has obtained the passport of another country, they are required to immediately surrender their Indian passport.
Persons of Indian Origin are not permitted to hold dual citizenship under The Indian Citizenship Act of 1955. A person must immediately return their Indian passport if they have previously held one and have afterwards got a passport from another nation.
Renunciation, Termination and Deprivation of Citizenship
- Renunciation: Anyone who renounces his Indian citizenship in the authorised manner through a statement and is also a citizen of another nation no longer qualifies as an Indian citizen.
- Termination: If an Indian citizen knowingly or willingly acquires the citizenship of another country, their citizenship may be withdrawn.
- Deprivation: The Indian government has the power to strip someone of their citizenship in certain circumstances. This does not, however, apply to all citizens. Deprivation criteria include:
obtained citizenship by deception. - Indian citizens have exhibited a lack of allegiance to the constitution.
- During times of conflict, citizens have traded and communicated illegally.
- The aforementioned citizen is sentenced to two years in jail within five years after naturalisation.
Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019
- The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955.
- The Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 seeks to grant citizenship to a class of migrants belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian communities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan who entered India prior to 2015.
- In order to get this benefit, they must have also been exempted from the Foreigners Act, 1946 and the Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920 by the central government.
- To obtain citizenship by naturalisation person must have resided in India or have been in the service of the central government for at least 11 years before applying for citizenship.
- For the above said groups of persons, the 11 years’ requirement will be reduced to five years.
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