NEW DELHI: In what may indicate further wait for operationalisation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the home ministry on Tuesday informed the Lok Sabha that the committees on subordinate legislation for Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have granted extended time until April 9, 2021 and July 9, 2021 respectively to frame the rules under CAA.
As per norms, rules to be made under a statute should be made as soon as possible and no later than six months from the date on which the statute comes into force. If it is not possible for the ministry to adhere to this timeline, it should state the reasons and seek an extension from the committee on subordinate legislation.
This is the second extension granted to the home ministry for framing the CAA rules.
TOI has learnt that while the draft CAA rules are more or less finalised, the government is waiting for some clarity from the court regarding certain provisions, particularly one relating to religious persecution. The Supreme Court is yet to resume hearing on the petitions challenging CAA.
CAA was passed by both Houses of Parliament in December 2019 and notified on December 12, 2019. Around a month later, the home ministry issued a notification declaring that CAA would come into force from January 10, 2020. However, the home ministry is yet to notify CAA rules, which will lay the procedure for religious minorities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh to apply for Indian citizenship as also for processing and approval of such applications.
The enactment of CAA had met with nationwide protests between December 2019 and March 2020 with a section slamming its provisions, coupled with a proposal for National Register of Citizens that is has not even been discussed within the government, as a ploy to deny citizenship rights to residents, particularly Muslims, who do not possess documents to establish their roots in India. The government, on its part, has dismissed these fears and insists that CAA is only an enabling legislation to provide citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Christian, Parsi, Buddhist and Jain nationals of three neighbouring countries, facing or fearing religious persecution there.