Assam government has granted Indian citizenship under the Citizenship Amendment Act to two individuals out of the 39 applications so far.
Photo: ANI
Assam government has granted Indian citizenship under the Citizenship Amendment Act to two individuals out of the 39 applications so far.
Assam Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary revealed that only two individuals residing in Assam have been granted Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) so far. A total of 39 applications were submitted, with 18 currently under consideration and 19 marked as “closed.”
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However, applicants whose cases have been closed retain the right to reapply.
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The CAA, enacted in December 2019, aims to grant Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan who arrived in India before December 31, 2014. Despite widespread protests and controversy surrounding its implementation, the slow pace of processing applications in Assam highlights the complexities involved in the verification and approval process.
Patowary, speaking on behalf of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, addressed the issue in response to a query by Congress MLA Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha.
The minister also provided insights into the ongoing infiltration challenges from Bangladesh, emphasising that while security forces are actively preventing illegal crossings, certain vulnerable areas, such as the riverine border in Sribhumi district, remain problematic.
From 2021 to 2024, security forces apprehended 156 Bangladeshi nationals attempting to enter Assam illegally. The breakdown of arrests includes 51 in 2021, 57 in 2022, 22 in 2023, and 26 in 2024.
On a separate issue, Patowary reported that Assam has achieved a 96.97 per cent saturation in Aadhar enrollment as of January this year. He emphasised that enrollment facilities are available across all districts and that the process is ongoing to achieve complete coverage.
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