Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, May 18: The Ministry of Home Affairs has amended the Citizenship Rules, 2009, making it mandatory for applicants from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh seeking Indian citizenship to declare the status of passports issued by their home countries.

According to a notification issued on Monday, applicants must now declare that they are not in possession of a valid or expired passport issued by the governments of the three countries.

If an applicant possesses an active passport, details including passport number, date and place of issue, and date of expiry will have to be provided, the gazette notification stated.

The amended rules further require applicants to declare that they will surrender their valid or expired passports to the concerned Senior Superintendent of Post or Superintendent of Post within 15 days of approval of their citizenship application.

The new provision has been inserted after Schedule IC of the Citizenship Rules, 2009.

The rules apply to Afghan, Bangladeshi and Pakistani nationals belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities seeking Indian citizenship under the provisions of the Citizenship Amendment Act.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, provides a pathway to Indian citizenship for undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who entered India before December 31, 2014.