Legal Systems for Citizenship

The U.S. President Donald Trump has issued an executive order restricting U.S. citizenship to children only if their parents hold U.S. citizenship or a U.S. green card.

About Citizenship

• Definition of citizenship: A legal status and relation between an individual and a state that entails specific legal rights and duties. 
  • Citizenship is generally used as a synonym for nationality.
• The Indian Constitution does not define the term ‘citizen’

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Legal Principles of Citizenship

• Jus Soli (Right of Soil): Citizenship is granted based on place of birth, irrespective of parents’ nationality.
  • Followed by many North American and Latin American countries, including Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina.
• Jus Sanguinis (Right of Blood): Citizenship is determined by the nationality of the parents rather than place of birth.
  • Practiced in many African, European, and Asian countries, such as Egypt, South Africa, Germany, and India.

U.S. Legal History

• The U.S. follows the jus soli principle, granting citizenship to anyone born within its borders.
• The 14th Amendment (1868) states that all persons born or naturalized in the U.S. are U.S. citizens.
• The U.S. Supreme Court (1898) reaffirmed that citizenship under the 14th Amendment extends to all children born in the U.S., regardless of their parents’ nationality.

Citizenship in India

• India’s Citizenship Act, 1955 initially followed the jus soli principle until 1987.
• Amendments introduced the jus sanguinis principle, linking citizenship to parents nationality.
• Citizenship Rules (Post-2004):
  • Citizenship is granted only if both parents are Indian citizens or if one parent is Indian and the other not an illegal immigrant.
  • This restriction was mainly to prevent illegal immigrants from Bangladesh from obtaining Indian citizenship.

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Comparison of Citizenship in India and U.S.

Citizenship Provisions in India

Citizenship in the Constitution: Citizenship falls under the Union List and is governed by Articles 5-11.

Articles and Provisions of Citizenship in India Termination of Citizenship (Citizenship Act, 1955)

• Renunciation: Voluntary surrender of Indian citizenship (applies to minor children as well).
• Termination: Citizenship automatically ends when an individual acquires another country’s citizenship.
• Deprivation: Citizenship may be revoked due to fraud, disloyalty, criminal acts, or prolonged absence (7 years) from India without registration.

Acquisition of Citizenship

• By Birth: 
  • Before July 1, 1987: Any child born in India is an automatic citizen.
  • Between July 1, 1987 – December 2, 2004: At least one parent must be an Indian citizen.
  • After December 3, 2004: Both parents must be Indian citizens, or one parent must be Indian and the other not an illegal migrant.
• By Descent:
  • Before December 10, 1992 : Citizenship is granted if the father was Indian at the time of birth.
  • After December 10, 1992: Citizenship granted if either parent was Indian at birth.
  • Birth must be registered with an Indian consulate within one year.
• By Registration: Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) who have lived in India for 7 years.
  • Foreign spouses of Indian citizens who have lived in India for 7 years.
  • Minors of Indian parents can apply for registration.
• By Naturalization: Naturalization is the process by which a foreign national acquires citizenship of a new country after fulfilling specific legal requirements. For Naturalisation in India a person : 
  • Must have lived in India for 12 months continuously before applying.
  • Must have resided in India for 11 out of the last 14 years (reduced to 5 years for select categories).
• By Incorporation of Territory: Citizenship is granted to people of territories that become part of India.

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Amendments to the Citizenship Act, 1955

• 1986 Amendment: Defined citizenship rules for those born before July 1, 1987.
  • Extended citizenship to those born between July 1, 1987 – December 4, 2003, if one parent was an Indian citizen.
• 2003 Amendment: Introduced the term “illegal migrant”, preventing them from acquiring Indian citizenship.
  • Removed “Commonwealth Citizenship” provision.
• 2015 Amendment: Merged Person of Indian Origin (PIO) and Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) schemes into a single “OCI” scheme.
• Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019:
  • Grants fast-track citizenship to Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, and Parsis from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who entered India before December 31, 2014.
  • Excludes Muslims, leading to debates on constitutional secularism.
  • The Supreme Court of India is reviewing its constitutional validity.
  • The government argues that the law helps persecuted minorities and is not discriminatory.

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