Citizenship Amendment Bill gets President’s assent, becomes Act
PTI, Dec 13, 2019, 10:33 AM IST
New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday gave his assent to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, turning it into an Act. According to an official notification, the Act comes into effect with its publication in the official gazette on Thursday.
According to the Act, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014, and facing religious persecution there will not be treated as illegal immigrants but given Indian citizenship.
The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was passed by Rajya Sabha on Wednesday and by Lok Sabha on Monday.
The Act says the refugees of the six communities will be given Indian citizenship after residing in India for five years, instead of earlier requirement of 11 years.
The Act also proposes to give immunity to such refugees facing legal cases after being found as illegal migrants.
According to the legislation, it will not be applicable to the tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura as included in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution and in the areas covered under the Inner Line Permit, notified under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873.
The ILP regime is applicable in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram.
However, a large section of people and organisations in the Northeast, especially in Assam and Tripura, have opposed the Act, saying it will nullify the provisions of the Assam Accord of 1985, which fixed March 24, 1971, as the cut-off date for deportation of all illegal immigrants irrespective of religion.
Protests against the legislation have intensified since Monday in the Northeast.
Two persons were killed on Thursday in police firing in Assam with thousands descending on streets defying curfew even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed his government was committed to safeguarding their rights.
Several towns and cities were placed under indefinite curfew, including Guwahati, the epicentre of protests, Dibrugarh, Tezpur and Dhekiajuli. Night curfew was imposed in Jorhat, Golaghat, Tinsukia and Charaideo districts, officials said.
The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) moved the Supreme Court challenging the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, saying it violates the fundamental Right to Equality of the Constitution and intends to grant citizenship to a section of illegal immigrants by making an exclusion on the basis of religion.
Udayavani is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest news.
Top News
Related Articles More
India taking this seriously: US official over report on assassination plot of Sikh separatist leader
ISRO releases ISSAR 2023 report on vulnerability of space assets to collisions
No CM can remain absent for long, it’s against national interest: Delhi HC on Kejriwal
Court convicts four accused, acquits 10 in 2015 Malvani hooch tragedy
ICG apprehends Indian fishing boat with 173 kg of narcotics; two crew members detained
MUST WATCH
Latest Additions
Groom in trouble for using PM Modi’s name in his wedding card
India taking this seriously: US official over report on assassination plot of Sikh separatist leader
ISRO releases ISSAR 2023 report on vulnerability of space assets to collisions
Hunasagi: MLA Bairati Basavaraj’s car overturned
No CM can remain absent for long, it’s against national interest: Delhi HC on Kejriwal