Who is “Indian by Birth”? Rethinking Citizenship Beyond Assumptions
I am proud to be a citizen of India, having been born in Bathinda, Punjab, on 31st July 1961—exactly 64 years ago today. This personal milestone, on my birthday, also reminds me how dramatically the legal landscape of citizenship has transformed since my birth. It is a common but misplaced belief that anyone born on Indian soil automatically becomes an Indian citizen. While this was largely true in the early decades after Independence, the law has since changed significantly. Today, Indian citizenship is no longer simply a matter of birthplace—it is determined by a complex web of constitutional provisions and statutory amendments shaped by demographic pressures, illegal migration, and evolving political realities. To understand this shift, one must also examine the furore over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), global parallels such as the U.S. birthright citizenship debate and Donald Trump’s contentious executive order seeking to limit it, and finally, the Election Commission’s Standardisation of Electoral Rolls (SIR) exercise in Bihar.
Constitutional Citizenship: The Early Settlement (1947–1950)
When India became independent in 1947, the question of who would constitute its first citizens arose amidst the upheaval of Partition. The framers of the Constitution addressed this through Articles 5, 6, and 7:
Article 5: Citizenship for persons domiciled in India on 26 January 1950 if:
They were born in India, or
Either parent was born in India, or
They had been ordinarily resident in India for five years prior to 26 January 1950.
Article 6: For migrants from Pakistan:
Those who entered India before 19 July 1948 became citizens automatically if they remained continuously thereafter.
Those who entered between 19 July 1948 and 26 January 1950 had to reside for six months and register with an official authority.
Article 7: For persons who migrated to Pakistan and returned:
Citizenship required a Central Government permit.
These provisions tied citizenship to both domicile and the extraordinary circumstances of Partition migration, creating a one-time constitutional settlement.
The Citizenship Act of 1955: From Birthright to Conditional Citizenship
After 1950, citizenship became statute-driven under the Citizenship Act of 1955, which initially embodied a broad jus soli principle. However, successive amendments steadily narrowed this right:
26 January 1950 to 30 June 1987:
Anyone born in India during this period was an Indian citizen by birth, regardless of parental status.
1 July 1987 to 2 December 2004:
A child born in India during this period became a citizen only if at least one parent was an Indian citizen at the time of birth.
On or after 3 December 2004:
A child is a citizen by birth only if:…
About the Author
Karan Bir Singh Sidhu is a retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer with nearly four decades of public service, including tenure as Special Chief Secretary, Punjab. He writes at the intersection of citizenship, illegal migration, statelessness, equitable rights for all minority communities, international human rights, and the constitutional and statutory provisions governing India’s legal framework, offering a practitioner’s insight grounded in administrative experience and legal nuance in India.