Getting citizenship in India requires the guidance of a legal professional, as well as there is a complete special section in the Indian Constitution regarding citizenship in India, so it becomes mandatory for every law aspirant to learn about this subject and know the whole process. Many online law certification courses in India based on constitutional law teach about this section of the Constitution. There is a separate legal profession(i.e, Naturalisation and Citizenship lawyer) for this purpose, these lawyers are specialists and help people in getting citizenship in India. In this Blog, the History behind citizenship, Constitutional Provisions, Acts, and modes of getting citizenship in India are mentioned. Also, the five ways to change or get national citizenship in India.
Let’s first understand what is Citizenship, A relationship between an individual and a state to which the owes the allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection. Citizenship is a legal concept which is granted by the national government, it can be changed or taken away from a person too. It is different from nationality which is obtained through inheritance. A person belonging to nationality can get access to citizenship of a different country or Nation. Citizenship depends on the factors like birth, inheritance, marriage, and Naturalization. There are two principles on which citizenship is based i.e, Jus Soli (Citizenship on the basis of Birth) and Jus sanguinis (recognization of blood ties).
History Behind Citizenship in India: At the time of independence happened the partition of India and Pakistan, all the citizens were given the choice to be part of the country they wish and get the nationality of that Country. Due to this situation, the framer of the Constitution put extra effort to enact strict provisions to frame the policy regarding nationality and citizenship before the establishment of the Indian Constitution.
Provisions in Constitution: Part II of the Indian Constitution is based on citizenship, it mentions all categories of people who are entitled to citizenship under Articles 5 to 11. These provisions were implemented on November 26, 1949, even before the whole constitution came into effect which was January 26, 1950. Law aspirants are required to learn all these articles completely, many legal learning platforms provide online legal certification courses on Constitutional law as well as guidance for students on how to get citizenship in India. The Provisions are as follows;
Article 5: Part II of the Indian Constitution is based on citizenship, it mentions all categories of people who are entitled to citizenship under Articles 5 to 11. These provisions were implemented on November 26, 1949, even before the whole constitution came into effect which was January 26, 1950. Law aspirants are required to learn all these articles completely, many legal learning platforms provide online legal certification courses on Constitutional law as well as guidance for students on how to get citizenship in India. The Provisions are as follows;
Article 6: Article 6 of the Indian constitution talks about the person who has migrated from Pakistan to India, such a person can have the citizenship of India if,If that person, their parents or grandparents were born in India under the India Act 1935.
A person who migrated before the date of 19 July 1949, would automatically become a citizen of India, if someone migrates after this date then they would need to register themselves.This Article of the Indian Constitution talks about the right to citizenship of certain migrants of Pakistan, after March of 1947 any person who entered Pakistan for residing was not considered an Indian citizen but there were some exceptions to this which are mentioned in Article 7. Article 7 states that any migrant person can get citizenship in India if; these persons return within a resettlement period.
Article 8: The 8th Article tells about the citizenship of a person of Indian origin residing outside. If any person, who is ordinarily residing outside of the country for education, marriage, job or any other such purpose shall be considered a citizen of India.
Article 9: Article 9 of the Indian constitution is concerned with the people who have voluntarily become citizens of a foreign country. This Article has read that India does not allow Dual citizenship, that’s why any Indian person who has voluntarily acquired citizenship of a Foreign country shall not be considered an Indian citizen.
Article 10: Article 9 of the Indian constitution is concerned with the people who have voluntarily become citizens of a foreign country. This Article has read that India does not allow Dual citizenship, that’s why any Indian person who has voluntarily acquired citizenship of a Foreign country shall not be considered an Indian citizen.
Article 11:
Article 11 states that Parliament has the power to make any provisions regarding the acquisition and termination of the citizenship and all other requirements related to it, which every person has to accept.
4 Ways to get Citizenship in India:The Parliament of India passed a comprehensive law managing the citizenship of Indian people in 1955 known as The Citizenship Act, 1955. This act is regulated by the Ministry of Home Affairs. There are four provisions listed in this act through which people get acquisition of citizenship of India, they are as follows;
By Birth:(Section 3) Any person born in India after the passing of the Bill will be considered a citizen of India till 1st July 1987 by birth irrespective of the nationality of Birth. Also, a person born in India between 1st July 1987 and 3 December 2008, is considered a citizen of India if either of whose parents have the citizenship of India by Birth. And, a person is considered a citizen of India if he/she is born after 3 December 2008, and at the time of birth, either of his/her parents is a citizen of India by birth and another one is not an illegal migrant.
By Decent:(Section 4) According to this Section, A person born after 26 January 1950 can be a citizen of India if his/her father is a citizen of India by birth, also A person born outside India between 10 December 1992 and 3 December 2004, can be considered a citizen of India if his/her parents were citizens of India by birth, and a person born after 3 December 2004 outside India cannot become a citizen of India unless his/her parents declare that minor doesn't have the passport of any country and register him/her in Indian’s consultant within one year of birth.
By Registration:(Section 5) Citizenship in India can be acquired by the registration, there are some rules for registering such as; A person who has Indian origin and has been a resident of India for 7 years can apply for registration, A person of Indian origin who is a resident of a country outside undivided India, A person who is married to an Indian citizen and is ordinarily resident of India for 7 years can register, and Minor Children of Indian Citizens can also register.
By Naturalization: (Section 6) Central government can grant citizenship to a person from a foreign country if he/she is ordinarily resident of India for more than 12 years and fulfils the qualifying criteria of the Third Schedule of the citizenship act.
But one must remember that these provisions are not applicable for dual citizenship as India is a country which has single citizenship. This act has been amended four times and brought many changes in the actual act, one can learn about all those conversions in the act through online legal courses based on this subject. Also, law aspirants must be aware of the complete act of Citizenship, as this whole process is done with the help of legal professionals.
Conclusion: There is another whole section on termination of citizenship in the act, where it is clearly mentioned the scenario in which one can get their citizenship terminated, then there are several cards and papers which provide privileges of a visa and Indian citizenship such as; Person of Indian Origin(POI) card, and Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card. Become a citizen of India, should be a decision one should take with proper thought and consideration also if one migrates to another country and wants to terminate the citizenship, this should also be considered very thoroughly, as this process takes a lot of time as well as paperwork and proper legal guidance. Also, law aspirants must be aware of all regulations, limitations, and requirements for this purpose. Many legal experts in this field, help students by sharing their knowledge and experience through online legal certification courses.