The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is a law passed by the Indian Parliament in December 2019. The CAA provides a path to Indian citizenship for religious minorities who faced persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan and entered India on or before December 31, 2014. Specifically, it grants eligibility for citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians from these countries, but excludes Muslims.
Eligibility for Citizenship : The CAA offers citizenship to persecuted minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan who entered India before December 31, 2014. These minorities include Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and christians. Notably, Muslims are excluded from this list.
Relaxation of Residence Requirement: The CAA relaxes the residence requirement for naturalization for these specific religious minority groups from these three countries. Normally, individuals seeking Indian citizenship through naturalization are required to have resided in India for at least 11 out of the previous 14 years. The CAA reduces this requirement to five years for these particular groups.
Fast-track Citizenship: Under the CAA, eligible individuals from the specified religious communities and countries can apply for fast-track citizenship. They are granted exemptions from the usual residency requirements for naturalization.
Legal Challenges and Protests: The CAA has sparked widespread protests across India, with critics arguing that it undermines the secular fabric of the country and discriminates against Muslims. There are concerns that when combined with other proposed measures like the National Register of Citizens (NRC), it could lead to the marginalization of Muslim communities.
Government’s Justification: The government, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), maintains that the CAA is a humanitarian gesture aimed at providing refuge to persecuted minorities from neighboring countries. They argue that it does not affect the citizenship status of any Indian citizen, including Muslims.
Exclusion of Muslims: One of the most contentious aspects of the CAA is that it excludes Muslims from the list of eligible religious minorities. Critics argue that this exclusion violates the secular principles of India’s constitution and discriminates against Muslims.