Having Aadhaar, PAN, voter ID does not prove Indian citizenship: HC

As per section 9 of the Foreigners Act, 1946, if the government places credible evidence before the court raising reasonable suspicion about a person’s citizenship, the burden of proof shifts to the latter, the court said

MUMBAI: Mere possession of Indian identity documents does not make anyone a citizen of India, the Bombay high court said on Tuesday while rejecting the bail plea of an alleged Bangladeshi national accused of staying illegally in the country.

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“Merely having documents such as Aadhaar, PAN, or voter ID does not, by itself, make someone a citizen of India,” justice Amit Borkar said while denying bail to Babu Abdul Ruf Sardar. “These documents are meant for identification or availing services, but they do not override the basic legal requirements of citizenship as prescribed in the Act (Citizenship Act, 1955).”

The Citizenship Act, 1955 lays down five ways of acquiring Indian citizenship – by birth, descent, registration, naturalisation, or incorporation of any new territory into India.

Sardar was arrested by the Wagle Estate police in Thane last year allegedly entering India illegally and obtaining Indian identity documents including a passport using fabricated documents. The police later found a digital copy of his birth certificate issued by Bangladeshi authorities on his mobile phone, while his internet protocol detail records (IPDR) and call detail records (CDRs) revealed frequent contact with Bangladesh residents.

Sardar had approached the high court for bail, contending that was a bona fide citizen of India and held multiple valid documents issued by competent Indian authorities, such as Aadhaar, PAN, voter ID, and passport. These documents were duly linked with his income tax records and bank accounts. Additionally, he also possessed an udyog Aadhaar, issued to enterprises, and a gumasta license pertaining to his business as a civil contractor, the petition said.

In court, Sardar’s counsel said that he had been residing in Thane since 2013 and the prosecution had not brought on record any conclusive or reliable evidence to prove that he was a Bangladeshi national.

The single judge bench, however, refused to accept his contentions, saying the Citizenship Act, 1955 was the main and controlling law for deciding questions of citizenship. Further, as per section 9 of the Foreigners Act, 1946, if the government placed credible evidence before the court raising reasonable suspicion about a person’s citizenship, the burden of proof shifted to the latter, the court said.

The single judge bench observed that Sardar had failed to produce any duly verified or authenticated documents which could conclusively establish his Indian citizenship. Identity documents like Aadhaar and PAN could not be treated as sufficient proof of lawful citizenship unless the process through which they were obtained had been verified, the bench said.

The investigation against Sardar was at a crucial stage and the allegations against him were serious, involving national security, illegal entry, and use of forged government documents. Thus, the court found it “neither proper nor prudent to enlarge the applicant on bail at this juncture,” and rejected his bail plea.

Ways of acquiring Indian citizenship:

The Citizenship Act, 1955 lays down five ways of acquiring Indian citizenship:

(i) By birth:

Those born in India between January 26, 1950 and July 1, 1987, are deemed Indian citizens by birth. Those born between July 1, 1987 and December 3, 2004 are deemed citizens if at least one parent was an Indian citizen at the time of birth. Those born after December 3, 2004 are deemed citizens when both parents are Indian citizens, or one is a citizen and the other is not an illegal immigrant.

(ii) By descent: A person born outside India is deemed a citizen if one parent was an Indian citizen at the time of their birth. If the parent was an Indian citizen by descent only, the person’s birth must be registered at an Indian consulate, along with a declaration that they do not hold a foreign passport.

(iii) By registration: Certain people, such as persons of Indian origin living in India or abroad, spouses of Indian citizens and minor children of Indian citizens can be registered as citizens.

(iv) By naturalisation: A foreign national can get citizenship if they have lived in India for a certain number of years and meet conditions related to age, character, knowledge of an Indian language, and surrender of their old citizenship.

(v) By incorporation of territory: If a new territory becomes part of India, the government can decide which of its residents will be given Indian citizenship.