CITIZENSHIP
Are you a citizen of India?
- Naturally you tend to say ‘yes’ but it is possible that you might not be a citizen of India
- Also, do you know that not every Indian is a citizen of India?
- You must be wondering how is that possible. Let’s dwell into the answers.
What is citizenship?
- Citizenship implies full and equal membership of a political community
- In the contemporary world, States (Countries) provide a collective political identity to their members
What are the benefits of obtaining a citizenship?
- States provide certain set of rights as well as protection exclusively to its citizens.
What are the kinds of rights and protection?
- The nature of the rights granted to citizens may vary from State to State but in most democratic countries today they would include
- Political Rights – Right to Vote
- Civil Rights - freedom of speech or belief and
- Socio Economic Rights - right to a minimum wage or the right to education.
Who all can become Citizens of India?
- Citizenship can be acquired by any one of the criteria
- By Birth
- By Descent
- By Registration
- By Naturalization
- By Incorporation of Territory
Is it possible to lose citizenship?
- Yes, Citizenship Law prescribes three ways of losing citizenship
- By renunciation – wilfully giving up
- By termination – e.g., when you become a citizen of other country
- By deprivation – by Government
Why can’t I be a citizen of two countries simultaneously?
- Because the constitution of India provides for only a single citizenship, that is, the Indian citizenship.
Are Rights available only to citizens?
- No, there are a set of fundamental rights that are available all the members. Let us see about them in the next topic.