Union House Ministry Seeks One other Six Months to Body CAA Guidelines

New Delhi: The Union Ministry of House Affairs has requested one other six-month extension to border the principles beneath the controversial Citizenship (Modification) Act (CAA) – making this the seventh related extension, The Hindu reported.

The CAA was handed by each Homes of parliament on the finish 0f 2019, amidst widespread nationwide protests. For the primary time, this legislation made citizenship straight correlated to an individual’s faith. Beneath the CAA, non-Muslim minorities from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh who entered India on or earlier than December 31, 2014 are eligible for fast-track Indian citizenship.

Nonetheless, with out the principles being framed, the Act can’t be applied.

In November, Union dwelling minister Amit Shah had mentioned that the principles have been being formulated and there had been a delay due to the pandemic. Earlier than that, in August, he had mentioned that the legislation could be applied as soon as the COVID-19 vaccination drive had been completed.

The CAA was handed within the Lok Sabha on December 10, 2019 and within the Rajya Sabha two days later after it was launched within the higher home by Shah. The transfer drew heavy criticism from politicians and residents alike for ostensibly singling out Muslims and excluding them from its purview.

The Act goals to offer citizenship to Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Christians purportedly fleeing persecution from India’s Muslim-majority neighbours; specifically, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.

The notable absence of Muslims from the provisions of the laws, regardless of whether or not or not they’re being persecuted of their international locations, in addition to the unconstitutional nature of the laws when coupled with the Nationwide Register of Residents (NRC) had drawn widespread protests from 1000’s of residents throughout the nation.

Regardless of the protests and violence that ensued, the federal government notified the legislation in January 2020. But, the principles of the legislation are nonetheless to be framed, regardless of three years having handed.

The Union authorities’s failure to border the principles has come beneath scrutiny in gentle of sure developments within the intervening years; for example, the truth that round 800 Pakistani Hindus were forced to return to their home country in 2021 as a result of they have been unable to get citizenship.

Dealing with non secular persecution in Pakistan, these Hindu migrants sought Indian citizenship by way of a fast-tracked route by way of an internet citizenship portal. Nonetheless, the notifications for this fast-tracked citizenship have been made beneath the Citizenship Act, 1955 and never the CAA as a result of the principles had not been framed.

Additional, after a Sikh man was killed in an attack on a Gurudwara in Afghanistan’s Kabul in June final 12 months, it got here to gentle that round 100 Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan had been awaiting approval for digital visas to India regardless of making use of for them earlier than the Taliban took over the nation.

Following the incident, and the deceased’s widow chatting with the media about his incapacity to acquire the visa, the Indian authorities granted ‘priority visas’ to the hundred-odd Hindus and Sikhs. Nonetheless, within the letter written by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Afghan Sikhs within the aftermath of the incident, no point out was fabricated from the CAA; an Act which, ostensibly, sought to keep away from simply such a scenario by bringing again persecuted non-Muslims to India.