New Delhi: The Union Home Ministry has notified implementation of the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) on Monday, days ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections schedule, even as protests continue across the country.
The CAA, introduced by the Narendra Modi government, aims to confer Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants, including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians, who migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014.
With the CAA rules being issued, the Modi government will now start granting Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants — Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians — from the three countries.
The CAA was passed in December 2019 and subsequently got the president’s assent but there were protests in several parts of the country against it. The law could not come into effect as rules had not been notified till now.
“These rules, called the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 will enable the persons eligible under CAA-2019 to apply for the grant of Indian citizenship,” a Home Ministry spokesperson said.
“The applications will be submitted in a completely online mode for which a web portal has been provided,” the spokesperson added.
According to the Manual on Parliamentary Work, the rules for any legislation should be framed within six months of presidential assent or the government has to seek an extension from the Committees on Subordinate Legislation in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
Since 2020, the Home Ministry has been taking extensions at regular intervals from the parliamentary committee for framing the rules.
No document will be sought from the applicants, an official said.
Over 100 people lost their lives during the anti-CAA protests or police action.
On December 27, 2023, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that no one can stop the implementation of the CAA as it is the law of the land and accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of misleading people on the issue.
Addressing a party meeting in Kolkata, Shah said it is the BJP’s commitment to implement the CAA.
The TMC, led by Mamata Banerjee, has been opposing the CAA since the beginning.
The promise of implementing the controversial CAA was a major poll plank of the BJP in the last Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in West Bengal.
The saffron party’s leaders consider it a plausible factor that led to the rise of the BJP in Bengal.
In the last two years, over 30 district magistrates and home secretaries in nine states have been given powers to grant citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians coming from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan under the Citizenship Act, 1955.
According to the annual report of the Ministry of Home Affairs for 2021-22, from April 1, 2021, to December 31, 2021, a total of 1,414 foreigners belonging to these non-Muslim minority communities from the three countries were given Indian citizenship by registration or naturalisation under the Citizenship Act, 1955.
The nine states where Indian citizenship by registration or naturalisation is given under the Citizenship Act, 1955 to non-Muslim minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are Gujarat, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Maharashtra.
Authorities of none of the districts of Assam and West Bengal, where the issue is politically very sensitive, have been given the powers so far.
Security tightened in parts of Delhi
Security has been beefed up in northeast Delhi, Shaheen Bagh, Jamia and other sensitive areas across the national capital following the notification of Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) on Monday, officials said.
Police personnel and paramilitary forces have also been deployed in some parts, with flag march being conducted in parts of northeast and southeast Delhi, they said.
Delhi witnessed communal riots in 2020 over the CAA and NRC (National Register of Citizens).
“Safety of every single common man of Delhi’s northeast district is our responsibility,” DCP northeast Joy Tirkey told PTI.
He further said that intensive patrolling and checking is being carried out by northeast district police personnel and paramilitary forces for the safety of citizens in sensitive areas. Everyone is requested to follow the safety instructions, the officer said.
“We have intensified night vigil along with paramilitary forces. No one will be allowed to breach the law and order situation. We took out flag marches for the safety of every single common,” the DCP said.
CAA designed to polarise polls, manage headlines: Congress
The Congress on Monday alleged that the timing of notifying the rules for the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is evidently designed to polarise voters during the coming Lok Sabha elections, especially in West Bengal and Assam.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh also alleged that the announcement is yet another attempt to “manage the headlines” after the Supreme Court’s strictures on the electoral bonds issue.
Ramesh said it has taken four years and three months for the Narendra Modi government to notify the rules for the law cleared by Parliament in December 2019.
“After seeking nine extensions for the notification of the rules, the timing right before the elections is evidently designed to polarise the elections, especially in West Bengal and Assam,” the Congress leader said.
“The prime minister claims that his government works in a business-like and time-bound manner. The time taken to notify the rules for the CAA is yet another demonstration of the prime minister’s blatant lies,” he said in a post on X.
The rules for implementation of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) 2019 were notified on Monday, paving the way for granting citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, according to officials.
Will oppose CAA if it discriminates people: Mamata
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said she would oppose the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) if it discriminates against groups of people.
Stating that the CAA and the NRC are sensitive to West Bengal and the Northeast, Banerjee said she does not want unrest before the Lok Sabha elections.
Addressing a hurriedly called press conference at the state secretariat, Banerjee said, “There are speculations that CAA ruled will be notified. Let me be very clear that we will oppose anything that discriminates people.”
“Let them bring out the rules, then we will speak on the issue after going through the rules,” she said.
(With inputs from agencies)
