Citizenship Amendment Bill Gets Presidential Nod Amidst Protests

The Citizenship Amendment Bill 2019, has now become an Act with the Centre notifying it in the official gazette late night on December 12, following the assent granted to it by President Ram Nath Kovind.

 The bill was cleared by the Rajya Sabha with 120 supporting votes and 105 opposing votes on December 11. The Lok Sabha had passed it on December 10 with 311 ‘Yes” and 80 ‘no’

The Citizenship Amendment Bill proposes granting Indian citizenship to the persecuted minorities such as Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis fleeing Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan who had entered India before December 31, 2014. As per proviso introduced in Section 2(1)(b), they will not be regarded as ‘illegal migrants’.  The Bill has no mention of Muslim refugees.

Many opposition parties, including the Congress, have strongly opposed the Citizenship Amendment Bill. But the Modi government has turned the arithmetic in Rajya Sabha in its favour with the support of JDU and BJD.

United Nations Human Rights Body Slams Citizenship Amendment Act; Calling it ‘Fundamentally Discriminatory’. North eastern states of Assam, Tripura and Meghalaya are witnessing violent protests the Act.  Curfew is in force in many regions. Internet shutdown has been imposed. Trains and air connectivity in these regions have come to a halt.

 This Act makes migrants belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Parsi, Jain and Christian religions from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan eligible for citizenship by naturalization if they can establish their residency in India for five years instead of existing eleven years.

Regions of north east which come under Schedule 6 of the Constitution are exempted from the application of the Act. Also, the areas covered by ‘Inner Line Permit’ under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation 1773 are also excluded from the Act.

 This exclusion is given apparently in view of the protests from North-Eastern states against the previous Citizenship Amendment Bill, which was cleared by the 16th Lok Sabha in January 2019. That bill had triggered violent protests in North-Eastern states on the ground that it will legitimize the stay of several illegal migrants, disturbing the local demographics. However, major portions of Assam and Tripura come under the present Act.

 Commenting on the Bill, Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh said, “Bill is in the national interest”. He went on to add that it is a Bill for those whose roots are in India.

Babita Sharma

Editor, INBA