UPSC Prelims 2021 Q89: Citizenship, Domicile and Deprivation — Explained
With reference to India, consider the following statements:
1. There is only one citizenship and one domicile.
2. A citizen by birth only can become the Head of State.
3. A foreigner once granted the citizenship cannot be deprived of it under any circumstances.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- 1 only
- 2 only
- 1 and 3
- 2 and 3
Answer: (a) 1 only
Statement-wise explanation
- 1: correct — India has a single citizenship. Part II of the Constitution (Articles 5–11) and the Citizenship Act, 1955 create only Indian citizenship, and there is no separate state citizenship. Article 5 uses the phrase 'domicile in the territory of India', meaning one domicile for the whole country. States cannot grant their own domicile status in the constitutional sense. Only Parliament may make residence a condition for some public jobs, under Article 16(3).
- 2: incorrect — Article 58(1) sets three conditions for the President: the person must be a citizen of India, must have completed 35 years of age, and must be qualified for election to the Lok Sabha. It does not ask for citizenship by birth. A citizen by naturalisation or registration can also be elected. The United States is different, because there the President must be a natural-born citizen.
- 3: incorrect — Section 10 of the Citizenship Act, 1955 lets the Central Government deprive a citizen by naturalisation or registration of citizenship. The grounds include: citizenship obtained by fraud, false representation or hiding a material fact; disloyalty to the Constitution shown by act or speech; unlawful trade or communication with an enemy during a war; a prison sentence of at least two years in any country within five years of naturalisation or registration; and seven years of continuous residence abroad without the stated exemptions. The phrase 'under any circumstances' is therefore false.
How to eliminate
Statement 3 says 'under any circumstances'. Absolute words like this are usually wrong in polity questions. Every country can take back citizenship that was obtained by fraud, so drop statement 3. That removes two options and leaves '1 only' and '2 only'. Statement 2 also has an absolute word: 'only'. You can settle it if you know that Article 58 asks only that the President be 'a citizen of India', without mentioning birth. Statement 1 is the textbook description of Indian citizenship. Fact to remember: Article 58 needs citizenship, not citizenship by birth. The US model needs a natural-born citizen, and that is the trap here.
Know more
Citizenship in India: how it is acquired and how it is lost
Part II of the Constitution (Articles 5–11) covers only who was a citizen when the Constitution began on 26 January 1950. Article 11 gives Parliament power to make laws on citizenship after that. Parliament used this power to pass the Citizenship Act, 1955.
Single citizenship. India is federal, but it has one citizenship and one domicile, as in the UK. The USA is different: it has both federal and state citizenship. Because domicile is single, states cannot reserve rights for their own 'citizens'. Only Parliament can make residence a condition for certain public jobs, under Article 16(3).
Five ways to acquire citizenship under the Act:
| Mode | Section |
|---|---|
| Birth | 3 |
| Descent | 4 |
| Registration | 5 |
| Naturalisation | 6 |
| Incorporation of territory | 7 |
Three ways to lose it:
| Mode | Section | Nature |
|---|---|---|
| Renunciation | 8 | Voluntary declaration |
| Termination | 9 | Automatic, when a citizen voluntarily takes another country's citizenship |
| Deprivation | 10 | Order of the Central Government. Applies to naturalised or registered citizens, on grounds such as fraud, disloyalty or helping an enemy |
Under Section 10(3), the government may deprive a person of citizenship only if it is satisfied that keeping the person as a citizen is 'not conducive to the public good'.
Offices open to any citizen. The Constitution does not distinguish between citizens by birth and naturalised citizens for high office. The President (Article 58), the Vice-President (Article 66), judges, the Attorney-General and members of Parliament only need to be citizens of India. Foreigners have no right to these offices.
NCERT Concepts to Revise
- Single citizenship: Statement 1 tests whether Indian federalism comes with separate state citizenship or domicile.
- Rights reserved for citizens: Statement 2 depends on which public offices the Constitution reserves for citizens, and what kind of citizen it requires.
- Residence requirement in public employment: Article 16(3) shows how the Constitution deals with residence and domicile, which is useful for judging statement 1.