In a significant move, the rules for the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), which was cleared by Parliament in December 2019, are set to be notified before the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections, according to government sources. The CAA aimed to expedite Indian citizenship for Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians who migrated to India due to religious persecution in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh. Notably, Muslims were excluded from the provisions of the Act.
After widespread protests erupted across the country following the passage of the CAA, the rules for its implementation were never notified, and the government sought repeated extensions for framing these rules. Sources now indicate that the rules are ready, and an online portal is in place to facilitate the application process, which will be entirely online.
“We are going to issue the rules for the CAA in the coming days. Once the rules are issued, the law can be implemented, and those eligible can be granted Indian citizenship,” said government sources. The process will include applicants declaring the year of entry into India without travel documents, and no additional documentation will be required from the applicants.
While the government had availed eight extensions to frame the rules, it now asserts that everything is in place, indicating a potential implementation of the CAA rules before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Notably, the contentious law faced opposition in various states, including Assam and Tripura, with concerns about potential demographic changes and violations of the Assam Accord in Assam.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah reiterated the BJP’s commitment to the CAA during a recent party gathering in West Bengal, emphasizing that the law is in force and no one can stop it. The move to finally notify the rules for the CAA is likely to reignite debates and discussions surrounding the polarizing legislation, as well as its impact on minority communities and the socio-political landscape of the country.
