Meaning and Significance of Citizenship

The population of any country is divided into two kinds of people – citizens and aliens. Citizens of any country enjoy all civil and political rights of that country while aliens do not enjoy all of the civil and political rights of that country. Citizens are members of the political community to which they belong. They are the people who compose the country.

Like other modern countries, India also has two kinds of people – citizens and aliens. Citizens are full members of the Indian State and enjoy all civil and political rights of India. On the other hand, aliens are citizens of some other country, and hence, they do not enjoy all the civil and political rights of India. Aliens are of two types – friendly aliens or enemy aliens. Friendly aliens are the citizens of those countries that have cordial relations with India. While enemy aliens are the citizens of that country that is at war with India. The enemy aliens have less rights than the friendly aliens, e.g., they do not enjoy protection against arrest and detention under Article 22.

The meaning of citizenship of any country is the involvement of the individual’s full political membership in that country, his permanent allegiance to that country and the official recognition by the government of that country of his integration into the political system. Citizenship brings with it certain rights, duties, privileges and obligations that do not belong to aliens. All public offices are open to citizens, and they are eligible for recruitment to all public services. The right to vote and certain fundamental rights are available only to citizens of that country, and citizens of that country have obligations like paying taxes, defending the nation. Citizenship may also be viewed as a means under which the individual pledges his loyalty to the country, and the country offers its protection to the individual.

Constitutional Rights and Privileges of Citizens of India

The question of Indian citizenship became particularly important at the time of the making of the Indian Constitution because the Constitution gave certain rights and privileges to those who were entitled to Indian citizenship while these rights and privileges were to be denied to ‘aliens’.

Thus, citizens of India have the following rights and privileges under the Constitution which aliens do not have:

1. Right against discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth under Article 15.
2. Right to equality of opportunity in the matter of public employment under Article 16.
3. Right to freedom of speech and expression, assembly, association, movement, residence and profession under Article 19.
4. Cultural and educational rights under Article 29 and 30.
5. Right to vote in elections to the Lok Sabha and state legislative assembly under Article 326.
6. Right to contest for the membership of the Parliament under Article 84 and of the Legislature of a State under Article 191-d.
7. Only citizens of India are eligible for certain offices, that is, the President of India under Article 58 (1)(a); the Vice-president of India under Article 66 (3)(a); Judge of the Supreme Court under Article 124 (3); Judge of the High Court under Article 217 (2); Governor of State under Article 157; Attorney General of India under Article 76 (2); and Advocate General of State under Article 165.

All the above rights are denied to aliens whether they are ‘friendly aliens’ or ‘enemy aliens’. But ‘enemy aliens’ suffer from a special disability. They are not entitled to the benefit of the procedural provisions in clause (1)) -(2) of Article 22 relating to arrest and detention.

The citizens of India also owe certain duties towards the country, as for example, paying taxes, respecting the national flag and national anthem, defending the country and so on.

Remember, in India, both a citizen by birth as well as a naturalised citizen are eligible for the office of President while in the USA, only a citizen by birth and not a naturalised citizen is eligible for the office of President.

Constitutional Provisions

The citizenship provisions in the Indian Constitution are from Article 5 to 11 under Part II. However, the Indian Constitution did not intend to lay down a permanent or comprehensive law relating to citizenship in India. It only laid down the law in regard to who would be citizens of India at the time of commencement (i.e., on January 26, 1950) of the Constitution. It did not provide for the mode of acquisition and termination of citizenship. It empowers the Parliament to enact a law to provide for such matters and any other matter relating to citizenship. However, Article 11 said that Parliament could regulate the right of citizenship by law. The Indian Citizenship Act passed in 1955 laid down the law for the acquisition and termination of citizenship, which has been amended in 1957, 1960, 1985, 1986, 1992, 2003, 2005, 2015 and 2019. Originally, the Citizenship Act of 1955 also provided the provision of Commonwealth Citizenship. But this provision was repealed by the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2003.

According to the Constitution, under Article 5 to 8 of the Constitution, the following categories of persons became citizens of India at the time of the commencement (i.e., on 26 January, 1950) of the Constitution-

1. Under Article 5 (a), every person who had his/her domicile in the ‘territory of India’ and was born in the ‘territory of India’, irrespective of the nationality of his/her parents.

2. Under Article 5 (b), every person who had his/her domicile in the ‘territory of India’ and was also his/her parents born in the territory of India, irrespective of the nationality of his/her parents and also irrespective of the birthplace of such person was not a ‘territory of India’.

3. Under Article 5 (c), every person who or whose father or mother was not born in the ‘territory of India’, but who had his/her domicile in the ‘territory of India’ and who had been ordinarily residing within the territory of India for not less than 5 years immediately preceding the commencement of the Constitution. In this case also, the nationality of the person’s parents is immaterial.

4. Under Article 6, a person who migrated to India from Pakistan became an Indian citizen if he/she or either of his/her parents or grand-parents was born in undivided India and also fulfilled any of the two conditions. The first condition was that if he/she migrated to India before July 19, 1948, he/she had been ordinarily resident in India since the date of his/her migration. The second condition is that he/she migrated to India on or after July 19, 1948, he/she had been registered as a citizen of India. But, he/she could be registered only if he/she had been resident in India for six months preceding the date of his/her application for registration.

5. Under Article 7, a person who migrated from India to Pakistan after 1 March 1947 but had subsequently returned to India for resettlement could become an Indian citizen. For this, he/she had to be resident in India for six months preceding the date of his/her application for registration.

6. Under Article 8, a person who, or any of whose parents or grand-parents, was born in undivided India but who is ordinarily residing outside India shall become an Indian citizen if he/she has been registered as a citizen of India by the diplomatic or consular representative of India in the country of his/her residence, whether before or after the commencement of the Constitution. Thus, this provision covers overseas Indians who may want to acquire Indian citizenship.

Thus, to sum up, these provisions relate which categories of person who became Citizens of India at the time of commencement (i.e., on 26 January, 1950) of the Constitution: (a) person who had domiciled in India; (b) person who migrated from Pakistan to India; (c) person who migrated to Pakistan from India but later returned; and (d) person who of Indian origin residing outside India.

The other three Constitutional Provisions with respect to the citizenship are as follows:

1. Under Article 9, no person shall be a citizen of India or deemed to be a citizen of India if he/she has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of any foreign state.

2. Under Article 10, every person who is or is deemed to be a citizen of India under any of the citizenship provisions shall continue to be a citizen of India, subject to the provisions of any law that may be made by Parliament. In the other words, it means that the right of citizenship cannot be taken away from a citizen except through express Parliamentary legislation.

3. Article 11 empowered the Parliament to make any provisions with respect to the acquisition and termination of citizenship and all other matters relating to the citizenship.

Acquisition of Citizenship

The various ways of acquisition of Citizenship of India prescribed by the Citizenship Act of 1955 are as follows:

1. Citizenship by Birth:

1. Every person born in India on or after 26th January 1950 but before 1st July 1987 is a citizen of India by birth irrespective of the nationality of his/her parents.
2. Every person born in India on or after 1st July 1987 but before the commencement of the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2003 is considered as a citizen of India only if either of his/her parents is a citizen of India at the time of his/her birth.
3. on or after the commencement of the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2003 either both of his/her parents are citizen of India or one of whose parents is a citizen of India and the other is not an illegal migrant at the time of his/her birth, shall be citizen of India by birth.

Remember that the children of foreign diplomats posted in India and children of enemy aliens cannot acquire Indian citizenship by birth. 

2. Citizenship by Descent:

1. a person born outside India on or after 26th January 1950 but before the 10th December 1992 is a citizen of India by descent if his/her father is a citizen of India at the time of his/her birth.
2. a person born outside India on or after 10th December 1992 but before the commencement of the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2003 is considered as a citizen of India if either of his/her parents is a citizen of India at the time of his/her birth.
3. From 3rd December 2004 onwards, a person born outside India shall not be a citizen of India by descent, unless his/her birth is registered at an Indian consulate within one year of the date of birth, or with the permission of the Central Government after the expiry of the said period.

However, a minor who is a citizen of India by virtue of descent and is also a citizen of any other country shall cease to be a citizen of India if he/she does not renounce the citizenship or nationality of another country within six months of attaining full age.

3. Citizenship by Registration:

Several classes of people (who have not otherwise acquired Indian citizenship) can register as a citizen of India (not being an illegal migrant) if he/she belongs to any of the following categories:

1. a person of Indian origin who has been ordinarily resident in India for seven years before making the application for registration.
2. a person of Indian origin who is ordinarily resident in any country or place outside undivided India.
3. a person who is married to a citizen of India and is ordinarily resident in India for seven years before making an application for registration.
4. minor children of people who are citizen of India.
5. a person of full age and capacity whose parents are registered as citizen of India.
6. a person of full age and capacity who has been registered as an overseas citizen of India for five years, and who has been residing in India for one year before making an application for registration.              

All the above categories of persons must take an oath of allegiance before they are registered as citizens of India. 

4. Citizenship by Naturalisation:

A foreigner not being an illegal migrant can acquire Indian citizenship on application for naturalisation to the Government of India. However, every foreigner naturalised as a citizen of India must take an oath of allegiance to the Constitution of India before they are registered as a citizen of India.  

5. Citizenship by Incorporation of Territory:

If any foreign territory becomes a part of India, the Government of India shall specify the people of that territory who shall be the citizens of India. Such people become citizens of India from the notified date.  

6. Special Provisions as to Citizenship of Persons Covered by the Assam Accord:

The Citizenship Amendment Act of 1985 added special provisions as to the citizenship of persons of Indian origin covered by the Assam Accord. These provisions are:

1. All people of Indian origin who came to Assam before the 1st January, 1966 from Bangladesh and who have been ‘ordinarily residents’ in Assam since the date of their entry into Assam shall be deemed to be citizens of India as from the 1st January, 1966.
2. Every person of Indian origin who came to Assam on or after the 1st January, 1966 but before the 25th March, 1971 from Bangladesh and who has been ‘ordinarily residents’ in Assam since the date of his/her entry into Assam and who has been detected to be a foreigner shall register himself/herself. Such a registered person shall be deemed to be a citizen of India for all purposes except the right of vote as from the date of expiry of a period of ten years from the date of detection as a foreigner.

Loss of Citizenship

The Citizenship Act of 1955 lays down three ways of losing the citizenship of India whether it was acquired under the Citizenship Act of 1955 or prior to it under the provisions of the Constitution (i.e., under Article 5 to 8). Anyone may lose the citizenship of India in any of the three ways—renunciation, termination and deprivation.

1. By Renunciation:

Renunciation is a voluntary act by which any citizens of India of full age and capacity who can make a declaration renouncing their citizenship of India can do so. Upon the registration of that declaration, that person ceases to be a citizen of India. However, during the war period in which India is engaged, such registration shall be withheld by the Central Government.       Furthermore, when any citizen of India renounces his/her Indian citizenship, every minor child of that person also loses Indian citizenship. However, when such a child attains the age of eighteen, he/she may resume Indian citizenship.  

2. By Termination:

Any citizen of India voluntarily (consciously, knowingly and without duress, under influence) acquires the citizenship of another country, his/her Indian citizenship automatically terminates by the Indian law. 

3. By Deprivation:

Deprivation of citizenship is a compulsory termination of the Indian citizenship of any person of India by the order of the Government of India if he/she is found in the following types of contingencies:

1. The citizen who has obtained the citizenship of India by fraud.
2. The citizen who has shown disloyalty towards the Constitution of India.
3. The citizen who has unlawfully traded or communicated with the enemy during a war.
4. The citizen who has, within five years after registration or naturalisation, been imprisoned in any country for two years.
5. The citizen who has been ordinarily resident out of India for seven years continuously.

Single Citizenship

Another notable feature of the Indian Constitution is that the Constitution of India recognises only one citizenship, i.e., the Indian citizenship, though the Indian Constitution is federal and envisages a dual polity (Centre and State). The citizens in India owe allegiance only to the Union. Hence, there is no separate citizenship of the state.

On the other hand, other federal states like the USA and Switzerland adopted the system of double citizenship. In the USA, each person is not only a citizen of the USA but also of the particular state to which he/she belongs. Thus, he/she owes allegiance to both and enjoys dual sets of rights – one set conferred by the national government and another by the state government. This type of citizenship system creates the problem of discrimination, i.e., A state may discriminate in favour of its citizens in matters like the right to vote, right to hold public offices, rights to practice professions and so on. This type of problem can be avoided in the system of single citizenship.

In India, all citizens irrespective of the state in which they are born or reside enjoy the same political and civil rights of citizenship all over the country, and no discrimination is made between them.  However, this general rule of the absence of discrimination is subject to some exceptions under Article 15,16, and 19.

Concept of Overseas Citizenship of India

In September 2000, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs had set up a High-Level Committee on the Indian Diaspora under the Chairmanship of L.M.Singhvi. The aim of the Committee was to make a comprehensive study of the global Indian Diaspora and to recommend measures for a constructive relationship with them. The committee submitted its report in January 2002 and recommended the amendment of the Citizenship Act of 1955 to provide for the grant of dual citizenship to the Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) belonging to certain specified countries.

In 2003, the Government of India amended the Citizenship Act of 1955, made provision for the acquisition of Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) by the Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) of 16 specified countries other than Pakistan and Bangladesh. These 16 countries are Australia, Canada, France, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Cyprus, Sweden, Switzerland, UK and USA. The Citizenship Amendment Act of 2003 also omitted all provisions recognizing or relating to the Commonwealth Citizenship from the Principal Act.

Later, the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2005 expanded the scope of the grant of OCI (Overseas citizen of India) for PIO (Persons of Indian Origin) for all countries except Pakistan and Bangladesh as long as their home countries allow dual citizenship in some form or other under their local laws. It must be noted here that the OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) is not actually dual citizenship as the Indian Constitution forbids dual citizenship or dual nationality.

The Citizenship Amendment Act of 2015 replaced the nomenclature of words “Overseas Citizen of India” with the words “Overseas Citizen of India Cardholder”. The Citizenship Amendment Act of 2015 made also enable provisions for: (a) registration of Overseas Citizen of India Cardholder; (b) conferment of rights on Overseas Citizen of India Cardholder; (c) renunciation of overseas citizen of India card; and (d) cancellation of registration as Overseas Citizen of India Cardholder.

Merger of Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIC) Schemes

The Central Government provides for two schemes for Indian origin persons, and their families, the Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) card and the Overseas Citizen of India (OIC) card. The PIO card scheme was introduced on 19th August 2002 and thereafter the OCI card scheme was introduced on 1st January 2005. Both the schemes are running in parallel, and the OCI card holder person enjoys more benefits than the PIO card holder person. For example, PIO card holder persons are entitled to visa-free entry into India for 15 years while OCI card holder persons are provided a lifelong visa.

The Citizenship Amendment Act of 2015 empowers that the Central Government may notify those Persons of Indian Origin (PIC) cardholders who shall be considered to be Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) Cardholders from a specified date, i.e., 6 January 2015. Thus, this Act introduced a new scheme called “Overseas Citizen of India Cardholder” by merging the PIO card scheme and the OCI card scheme.

Non-Resident Indian (NRI)

An Indian citizen who is ordinarily residing outside India and holds an Indian passport.

Person of Indian Origin (PIO)

A person who or whose ancestors were an Indian national and who is presently holding another country’s citizenship/nationality, i.e., he/she is holding a foreign passport.

Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) Cardholder

A person registered as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) Cardholder under the Citizenship Act of 1955.

To know about the Article Related to citizenship, refer to the table below