Citizenship Amendment Bill Gets President's Nod; Turns Into Act

As per gazette of India, the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 of "Parliament received the assent of the President on December 12, 2019, and here by published for general information".

President Ram Nath Kovind gives his assent to The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. (Photo by PETER SCHNEIDER / POOL / AFP)

New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind on  gave his assent to the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019m turning the contentious bill into an Act, in a late-night order on Thursday. It allows Indian citizenship to six non-Muslim minority migrants facing religious persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The Act says the refugees of the six communities will be given Indian citizenship after residing in India for five years, instead of earlier requirement of 11 years. The Act also proposes to give immunity to such refugees facing legal cases after being found as illegal migrants. The Bill was passed by Rajya Sabha on Wednesday and by the Lok Sabha on Monday. As per gazette of India, the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 of "Parliament received the assent of the President on December 12, 2019, and here by published for general information". According to the Act, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014 and facing religious persecution there will not be treated as illegal immigrants but given Indian citizenship. Protest in North East: Protests against the legislation have intensified since Monday in the Northeast. According to the legislation, it will not be applicable to the tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura as included in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution and in the areas covered under the Inner Line Permit, notified under the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873. The ILP regime is applicable in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram. However, a large section of people and organisations in the Northeast, especially in Assam and Tripura, have opposed the Act, saying it will nullify the provisions of the Assam Accord of 1985, which fixed March 24, 1971, as the cut-off date for deportation of all illegal immigrants irrespective of religion.