Indian Polity: Citizenship (Articles 5-11)

Citizenship is covered in Part II (Articles 5-11) of the Indian Constitution and the Citizenship Act, 1955. Kerala PSC frequently asks about types of citizenship, acquisition methods, and recent amendments like CAA 2019. Expect 1-2 questions per paper.

Constitutional Provisions (Articles 5-11)

Article	Subject	Content
Article 5	Citizenship at commencement	Every person domiciled in India and born in India, OR whose parents were born in India, OR who has been ordinarily resident for 5+ years before Constitution commenced
Article 6	Rights of migrants from Pakistan	Persons who migrated from Pakistan before 19 July 1948 became citizens if (a) born in undivided India AND (b) resident in India since migration. After 19 July 1948 — only if registered
Article 7	Rights of migrants TO Pakistan	Persons who migrated to Pakistan after 1 March 1947 lost Indian citizenship; exception: those who returned on permit
Article 8	NRIs of Indian origin	Persons of Indian origin residing outside India could register as citizens with diplomatic missions
Article 9	Voluntary foreign citizenship	Any person who voluntarily acquires citizenship of a foreign state ceases to be Indian citizen
Article 10	Continuance of citizenship	Every citizen continues to be citizen subject to any law made by Parliament
Article 11	Power of Parliament	Parliament has full power to make any provision on citizenship (acquire, terminate, regulate)

Key Principles of Indian Citizenship

Feature	India’s Position
Single citizenship	India has single citizenship (unlike USA which has dual — federal + state)
No state citizenship	All Indians are citizens of India, not of individual states
Uniform rights	All citizens have same rights regardless of state of residence (with minor exceptions like Article 370 earlier, tribal areas)
Constitutional basis	Part II of Constitution + Citizenship Act, 1955
Parliament’s power	Article 11 — Parliament can make any law regarding citizenship

Citizenship Act, 1955 — Acquisition of Citizenship

Method	Details
By Birth	Born in India on/after 26 Jan 1950 but before 1 July 1987 — citizen regardless of parents’ nationality. Born between 1 July 1987 and 2 Dec 2004 — citizen if either parent is Indian citizen. Born on/after 3 Dec 2004 — citizen only if both parents are citizens OR one parent is citizen and other is not illegal migrant
By Descent	Person born outside India on/after 26 Jan 1950 is citizen if father was Indian citizen at time of birth. From 1992 amendment: if either parent is citizen. Must be registered at Indian consulate within 1 year of birth
By Registration	Available to persons of Indian origin, spouses of Indian citizens (married 7 years), minor children of Indian citizens, etc. Application to prescribed authority
By Naturalisation	For foreigners; must reside in India for 12 years (11 years aggregate + 1 year immediately before application); adequate knowledge of a language in 8th Schedule; good character; intention to reside in India
By Incorporation of Territory	When new territory becomes part of India, Government specifies who becomes citizen (e.g., Goa 1961, Sikkim 1975)

Termination/Loss of Citizenship

Method	Details
Renunciation	Voluntary declaration by citizen of full age and capacity. Minor children also lose citizenship (can resume within 1 year of turning 18)
Termination	Automatic — if an Indian citizen voluntarily acquires citizenship of another country
Deprivation	Compulsory — by order of Government if: citizenship obtained by fraud; citizen disloyal to Constitution; citizen unlawfully traded with enemy; citizen ordinarily resident outside India for 7+ continuous years

Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019

Aspect	Details
Passed	11 December 2019 (came into effect 10 January 2020; rules notified March 2024)
Amendment to	Citizenship Act, 1955 (Section 2(1)(b))
Provision	Grants eligibility for Indian citizenship to persecuted religious minorities — Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians — from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan
Condition	Must have entered India on or before 31 December 2014
Residency relaxation	Reduces naturalisation requirement from 11 years to 5 years for these groups
Exclusion	Does not include Muslims from these countries
Does not apply to	Areas under 6th Schedule (tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram); states with Inner Line Permit (Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur)

National Register of Citizens (NRC)

Aspect	Details
Definition	Official register of Indian citizens
Assam NRC	Updated under Supreme Court supervision; final list released 31 August 2019; 19.06 lakh people excluded out of 3.3 crore applicants
Legal basis	Citizenship Act, 1955 and Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003
Purpose	Identify illegal immigrants
Cut-off for Assam	Midnight of 24 March 1971 (based on Assam Accord, 1985)

Overseas Citizen of India (OCI)

Aspect	Details
Introduced	2005 (by Citizenship Amendment Act, 2003)
Merged PIO + OCI	2015 (PIO card scheme merged into OCI)
Who is eligible	Former Indian citizens (or their descendants up to 4 generations) who are citizens of other countries; spouse of OCI cardholder (married 2+ years)
Not eligible	Person who was ever citizen of Pakistan or Bangladesh
Rights	Multiple entry, multi-purpose lifelong visa to India; no visa required; parity with NRIs in economic, financial, educational fields (except agricultural land purchase)
Cannot do	Vote; hold constitutional posts (President, VP, Governor, Judge); join government services; buy agricultural land
Not dual citizenship	OCI is a long-term visa, NOT dual citizenship (India does not allow dual citizenship)

Comparison: Citizen vs OCI vs Foreigner

Right	Indian Citizen	OCI Card Holder	Foreigner
Vote	Yes	No	No
Stand for election	Yes	No	No
Hold government posts	Yes	No	No
Visa-free travel to India	N/A	Yes (lifetime)	No
Buy property	Yes	Yes (except agricultural)	Restricted
Fundamental Rights (Art. 14, 21)	Yes	Art. 14, 21 only	Art. 14, 21 only
Right to reside permanently	Yes	Yes	No (needs visa)

Important Constitutional Cases on Citizenship

Case	Significance
Assam Sanmilita Mahasabha vs Union of India (2015)	SC directed NRC update in Assam
Sarbananda Sonowal vs Union of India (2005)	SC struck down IMDT Act as unconstitutional; helped pave way for NRC

Quick Recall — PSC Favourites

Question	Answer
Part of Constitution dealing with citizenship?	Part II (Articles 5-11)
Can Parliament make laws on citizenship?	Yes — Article 11
India has single or dual citizenship?	Single citizenship
Naturalisation requires residence of?	12 years (11 aggregate + 1 continuous)
Voluntary acquisition of foreign citizenship means?	Automatic loss of Indian citizenship
CAA 2019 covers which countries?	Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan
CAA 2019 covers which religions?	Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, Christian
CAA cut-off date?	31 December 2014
NRC Assam final list year?	2019 (31 August)
OCI cardholders can vote?	No
Does India allow dual citizenship?	No
Citizenship Act enacted in?	1955