No more changes to Citizenship Act

New Delhi: The Centre on Wednesday said that it has no proposal under consideration to further amend the Citizenship Act for granting Indian nationality to members of other minority communities. The objective of the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), enacted in 2019, is to grant Indian citizenship to non-Muslim persecuted minorities -- Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians -- from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

"No such proposal is under consideration," Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said in Rajya Sabha in reply to a question on whether the government is considering any further amendment to the Citizenship Act by including other minorities under its purview. Rai also said Indian citizenship to the eligible beneficiaries under the CAA will be given only after rules under the legislation are notified. "Eligible persons covered by the Citizenship Amendment Act may submit applications for grant of citizenship after appropriate rules are notified by the central government," he said in a written reply to another query in the Upper House.

He was asked whether the government has received new applications for citizenship after the CAA 2019 was enacted. The CAA was notified on December 12, 2019 and came into force with effect from January 10, 2020, the minister said. "The Committees on Subordinate Legislation, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have been requested to grant further extension of time up to January 9, 2022 to frame the rules under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019," Rai said.