CAA NRC Bill PDF – THE CITIZENSHIP (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2019 PDF Download: There is a lot of buzz about the touted NRC bill, aka “the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 (CAA, 2019)”. Many of you may have read or heard about the ongoing protests and clashes regarding this. There are so many controversies surrounding it, while the lawmakers claim this amendment is the need of the hour. Many say it is a law-fiction of political views against certain religious communities, while some question it for its hidden agendas. While many sources stay embroiled to solve it, let us see the pin-points of this legislation. This article will show the major aspects of the CAA/ NRC Bill 2019 PDF and how it affects Indian socioeconomic development.
Contents
About The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019
The citizenship amendment bill 2019 aims at bringing changes to the Citizenship Act of 2016. As per the official document, the bill aims to decide which individual seems fit to obtain Indian nationality. Essentially, it sets criteria to decide who is Indian and who is not. Furthermore, the bill also aims at giving citizenship status to illegal migrants of the following religious communities:
- Hindus,
- Sikhs,
- Buddhists,
- Jaina,
- Parsis, and
- Christians.
Moreover, the countries considered for their illegal migration are Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. This means illegal migrants from above said counties and religious communities would not be deported nor punished for not having Indian citizenship.
How Is It Different From CAA 2016 Version?
CAA stands for Citizenship Amendment Act. Our experts have thoroughly studied and compared the citizenship act of 2016 and compared it to the present Amendment Bill of 2019. Many new provisions and modifications are added to the newest citizenship bill. Here are the highlights of some of the key modifications below:
- The 2016 version strictly prohibited any illegal migrant from Indian citizenship acquisition. However, the 2019 bill has made provisions for illegal migrants from above mentioned religious communities to become Indian citizens. Furthermore, any ongoing legal proceedings against such migrants will be withdrawn.
- So, the period of citizenship acquisition via naturalization has been reduced from 6 years (2016 act) to 5 years (2019 bill).
- The 2019 bill also specifies that citizenship acquisition procedures are not applicable in certain Indian States. These states include the tribal areas of Sixth Schedule states ( namely, Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Tripura). Furthermore, this provision applies to states with Inner line permit areas, such as Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, and Mizoram.
Controversy Around CAA/ NRC Bill Legislation
Close observation of the provisions of this bill has made many people odd about one community. It does not mention anything about the citizenship acquisition of Muslim illegal migrants. Therefore, it is apparent that the bill has some inherent issues that need clarification. As per the common notion, many feel that this particular provision is against the essence of Equality. Many theories suggest that the new bill directly violates Article-14, i.e. Right to Equality, as it particularly excludes a religious community. However, this is quite a misleading theory. The new bill is not aimed at any religious community but the country of origin. If you study the nature of the countries of origin, you will observe that these countries are mostly Islamic states.
Furthermore, the communities in question frequently face religious persecution in those countries against a Muslim individual in the same country. Hence, the rationale of differentiation is based on positive discrimination. Moreover, it is also the essence of Article-14.
CAA/ NRC Bill PDF Download
The second issue pertains to the registration procedures of OCI (overseas citizen of India) cardholders. As per the recent amendments in the 2019 bill, the government has additional grounds for card cancellations. It states that if the OCI has violated any law made by the Indian legislature, then the central government is bound to cancel its status OCI. Major experts feel that this provision overwhelmingly gives the central government an upper hand in controlling the laws.
This excessive delegation of power can be a threat to the Democratic fabric of India. Additionally, the law is ambiguous in defining the extent of power the central government can process in this aspect. Hence, the government faces flak over this and should address it soon. Here check the direct download link of the CAA/ NRC Bill 2023 PDF.
The Indian legislature and executive body are responsible for deciding India’s future outline. Furthermore, it is entrusted with the power to make just laws for every Indian. Though the new citizenship law has certain lacunas, addressing it will improve the current social fabric of India. Besides, it will also help other organizations in India to correctly asses the populace of the country. So, this Citizenship Amendment Bill is a step forward to utilizing the demographic dividend correctly.