Introduction
In
this post, we shall discuss the manner in which a person who is married to an
Indian Citizen can acquire Citizenship of India. Section 5 (1) (c) of the
Citizenship Act, 1955 states as under:-
“Subject to the provisions of this section and such
other conditions and restrictions as may be prescribed, the Central Government
may, on an application made in this behalf, register as a citizen of India any
person not being an illegal migrant who is not already such citizen by virtue
of the Constitution or of any other provision of this Act if he belongs to any
of the following categories, namely: —
(c) a person who is married to a citizen of India and
is ordinarily resident in India for seven years before making an application
for registration;”
Thus
the wordings of this sub-section make it amply clear that the Applicant needs
to be ordinarily residing in India for seven years. Now, the explanation
appended to this section explains what is meant by the term “ordinarily
resident”. It states that:
“For the purposes of clauses (a) and (c), an applicant
shall be deemed to be ordinarily resident in India if—
(i) he has resided in India throughout the period of
twelve months immediately before making an application for registration; and
(ii) he has resided in India during the eight years
immediately preceding the said period of twelve months for a period of not less
than six years.”
The
word “and” here signifies that both the conditions need to be satisfied in
order to fulfil the condition of ordinary residence.
Explanation
The
manner in which Section 5 (1) (c) is to operate has been explained under Rule 5
of the Citizenship Rules, 2009 which states that:
“5. Application for registration under clause (c) of
sub-section (1) of section 5.-
(1) An application from a
person, who is married to a citizen of India, for registration as a citizen of
India under clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 5 shall not be entertained
unless –
(a) the application is made in Form III;
(b) he gives an undertaking in writing that he shall
renounce the citizenship of his country in the event of his application being
sanctioned;
(c) on the date of making the application he,-
(i) has
been ordinarily a resident of India; or
(ii) has
been in the service of the Government of India;
at least for a period of seven years; and
(d) he makes the oath of allegiance as specified in
the Second Schedule to the Citizenship Act, 1955.
Explanation. - In computing the period of seven
years, any broken period of residence and service under sub-clauses (i) and
(ii) of clause (c) shall be included in the period specified therein.
2) The Central Government may, in consideration of the
special circumstances, exempt, any foreign national married to such an Indian
citizen who is in the service of the Government in India, from the operation of
clause (c) of sub-rule (1).
(3) The Central
Government may, in consideration of the special circumstances, exempt any
foreign national who has been married to an Indian citizen for not less than
seven years and who has visited India at least once in a year during any seven
years out of nine years, from the operation of clause (c) of sub-rule (1).”
Thus
the broken period of residence is also counted for the purposes of completing
seven years. The Applicant need not reside for a continuous period without a
break. The broken period will be counted for the purposes of computing the
duration. However, what should be the exact quantum in this residence is
unclear. For the purposes of these rules, it is plainly stated that any broken
period of residence shall be included.
Exemption under Section 5
(6)
Now,
we also have Section 5 (6) of the Citizenship Act that talks about Section 5
(1) (c) and its residency requirement. It states that:
“(6) If the Central Government is satisfied that circumstances exist which render it
necessary to grant exemption from the residential requirement under clause (c)
of sub-section (1) to any person or a class of persons, it may, for reasons
to be recorded in writing, grant such
exemption."
This
provision gives power to the Central Government to grant exemption from the
residential requirement. The kind of circumstances that need to exist in order
to invoke this provision are not mentioned. However, it is clear that
discretionary powers of widest amplitude have been given to the Central
Government to exempt any person from the seven-year residential requirement. The
only requirement is that the reasons for such exemption have to be recorded in
writing.
Importance of Exemption
under Section 5 (6) and Conclusion
Section
5 (6) grants wide powers of exemption to the Government. This provision can be
useful for persons who are married to Indian Citizens and need Indian
Citizenship with immediate effect. Such persons are those who need to carry out
business or acquire certification of Indian Agencies of their Professional
Qualification. E.g. A Doctor/Medical Professional in another country married to
an Indian National might wish to practice in India and for that such person must
clear the exam prescribed by the Medical Council of India which can only be
given by Indian Nationals. Such persons can make an Application to the Central
Government under Section 5 (6) asking for exemption from the residential
requirement. Even other categories of persons who are in dire need of Indian
Citizenship to carry out their livelihood by legitimate means can also claim exemption
under Section 5 (6) of the Citizenship Act, 1955.
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