The notification of the rules is set to pave the way for the migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who belong to Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Parsi, Buddhist, and Christian communities to find citizenship in India
The Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government on Monday announced the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The move to notify the rules of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act came before the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
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Notably, the CAA was an integral part of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s manifesto for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The law was passed by Parliament on December 11, 2019 after Modi government 2.0 came to power.
“Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will be notifying today, the Rules under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA-2019). These rules, called the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 will enable the persons eligible under CAA-2019 to apply for grant of Indian citizenship,” the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement on X.
“The applications will be submitted in a completely online mode for which a web portal has been provided,” it added.
RULES NOTIFIED BEFORE LOK SABHA POLLS
The issue of CAA has drawn massive protests across India in 2019, with some parties calling the legislation divisive.
The government has debunked such narratives and called CAA a “law of the land” that would be implemented.
Speaking at a business summit last month, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that the CAA rules will be implemented before the Lok Sabha polls.
“Our Muslim brothers are being misled and instigated (against the CAA). The CAA is only meant to give citizenship to those who came to India after facing persecution in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. It is not for snatching anyone’s Indian citizenship,” he had said.
ABOUT CAA
The notification of the rules is set to pave the way for the migrants from neighbouring countries to find citizenship in India.
The CAA amends the Citizenship Act of 1955 to provide Indian citizenship to migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who belong to Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Parsi, Buddhist, and Christian communities and had entered India on or before December 31, 2014, due to religious persecution in their home countries.
The CAA will help refugees from these neighbouring countries, who don’t have documents.
