Citizenship

The concept of the nation-state evolved in the modern period. One of the earliest assertions regarding the sovereignty of the nation-state and democratic rights of citizens was made by the revolutionaries in France in 1789. Nation-states claim that their boundaries define the political community to which citizenship belongs. This relationship between citizen and nation-state raises fundamental questions about cultural identity, belonging, and the limits of assimilation. A key tension arises when the national culture of the dominant group within a state conflicts with the practices of minority communities. The case of Sikh schoolboys in France seeking to wear turbans, and Muslim girls seeking to wear headscarves with school uniforms — and these being disallowed by some schools on the grounds of keeping religious symbols out of the public sphere of state education — illustrates this tension. For groups whose religions demand specific dress or practice, assimilation into the national culture is harder than for others whose religions do not make such demands. India undertook a unique constitutional experiment: rather than forcing people to give up their personal beliefs, languages, or cultural practices, the Constitution attempted to forge national unity while respecting diversity. The Republic Day parade in Delhi symbolises this attempt by the state to include people of different regions, cultures, and religions. The chapter also addresses the problem of statelessness and refugees — people who lose citizenship, homes, political identities, and security due to war or political disputes. Palestinians, Burmese, and Bangladeshis are cited as examples of people forced to become refugees. This problem is further compounded because, while many states support the idea of universal and inclusive citizenship, each state also fixes its own criteria for granting citizenship, which can leave many without adequate protection. Finally, the idea of global citizenship is noted: supporters argue that although a world community does not yet exist, people already feel linked across national boundaries, and events like international responses to disasters such as the Asian tsunami suggest an emerging sense of global solidarity.

Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) is a scheme established to provide a form of long-term visa status and limited rights to Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) who are citizens of foreign countries. The OCI scheme is not dual citizenship, as the Indian Constitution explicitly forbids dual citizenship under Article 9. Rather, it grants registered OCI cardholders a lifetime multiple-entry visa to India and certain economic, financial, and educational benefits on par with Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), while restricting political and public service rights. The scheme evolved through several legislative amendments. The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2003 initially provided OCI status to PIOs of 16 specified countries (excluding Pakistan and Bangladesh). The 2005 amendment expanded eligibility to PIOs of all countries except Pakistan and Bangladesh, provided their home countries allow dual citizenship under local laws. Most significantly, the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2015 merged the earlier PIO card scheme (introduced August 19, 2002) with the OCI card scheme (introduced December 2, 2005) into a unified "Overseas Citizen of India Cardholder" scheme, effective January 9, 2015.

Citizenship has been defined as full and equal membership of a political community. In the contemporary world, states provide a collective political identity to their members. Being a citizen is not merely a legal status — it comes with a bundle of rights and responsibilities that characterise membership of the political community. The rights that citizenship confers include civil and political rights such as freedom of speech or belief, as well as socio-economic rights that could include the right to a minimum wage or the right to education. Crucially, equality of rights and status is identified as one of the basic rights of citizenship — all citizens are entitled to equal treatment before the law and equal standing within the political community. Citizens do not simply receive these rights as a gift. Historically, each right now enjoyed by citizens has been won after struggle. Some of the earliest struggles were fought by people asserting their independence and rights against powerful monarchies. Many European countries experienced such struggles, some of them violent. This historical dimension underlines that citizenship is a dynamic institution whose content can be expanded or challenged over time. Although states may support the idea of universal and inclusive citizenship, each state also fixes criteria for the grant of citizenship. These criteria are generally written into the Constitution and laws of the country. Thus the ideal of full and equal membership must be realised through specific institutional and legal mechanisms, which vary from state to state. In India, like any other modern state, there are two kinds of people: citizens and aliens. Citizens are full members of the Indian State, owe allegiance to it, and enjoy all civil and political rights. Aliens are citizens of another state and do not enjoy all the civil and political rights. They are categorised as either friendly aliens (subjects of countries in cordial relations with India) or enemy aliens (subjects of countries at war with India), with enemy aliens enjoying fewer rights than friendly aliens, such as lack of protection against arrest and detention under Article 22.

The Citizenship Act, 1955 is the principal legislation governing acquisition and loss of Indian citizenship following the commencement of the Constitution on January 26, 1950. The Constitution itself (Articles 5–11 under Part II) addresses citizenship only at commencement and does not provide elaborate or permanent provisions for acquisition or loss of citizenship thereafter. The Constitution therefore empowers Parliament to enact laws on these matters, resulting in the Citizenship Act, 1955, which has been amended multiple times. The Act prescribes five methods of acquiring citizenship: birth, descent, registration, naturalisation, and incorporation of territory. Each method has specific conditions and eligibility criteria that have evolved through amendments—particularly changes in 1987, 1992, and 2004 regarding citizenship by birth and descent. The Act also delineates three ways of losing citizenship: renunciation, termination (automatic upon voluntary acquisition of foreign citizenship), and deprivation (compulsory loss by government action). Special provisions were added by the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 1985, for persons covered by the Assam Accord. Originally the Act provided for Commonwealth Citizenship, but this was repealed by the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2003. ---