New Portal Launched for Citizenship Applications Under CAA

As per Followed with the recent implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) provisions, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has now launched an online portal for individuals from six specified minority communities who have faced religious persecution in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. These communities are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians, who can now submit their applications for Indian citizenship through the portal.

The launch of the portal ([indiancitizenshiponline.nic.in]) aligns with the MHA's notification of the CAA rules, which have been updated to CA 2024. The updated rules facilitate the citizenship process for eligible refugees who sought refuge in India on or before December 31, 2014. The amendment significantly reduces the residency requirement from the previous 11 years to just five years for these individuals.

The MHA's annual report for the fiscal year 2021-22 indicates that 1,414 individuals from these minority groups have already been granted Indian citizenship through registration or naturalization, under the revised Citizenship Act of 1955.

The CAA has faced considerable opposition, with nationwide protests arising from concerns over perceived discrimination against Muslims and the potential implications for the National Population Register (NPR) update and the contentious National Register of Citizens (NRC). Critics have accused the government of promoting a sectarian agenda.

The CAA's introduction followed a contentious NRC exercise in Assam, which resulted in approximately 20 lakh individuals being excluded from the draft list due to insufficient residency documentation. 

In response, legislative assemblies in six states—Punjab, West Bengal, Kerala, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh—passed resolutions urging the central government to retract the CAA amendments.