Abstract

The purpose of this research paper is to study the legal status of dual citizenship in India. It delves into the issue whether dual citizenship is a feasible concept for Indian scenario or not. The citizenship for a country is a very important subject as it entails rights and obligations for the citizens as well as the State. It is a legal choice for a nation to choose either single or dual citizenship, considering its peculiar social, economic and political characteristics. Dual citizenship is not a novel concept and has been adopted and recognized by various countries in the world. The expanding globalization has ripple effects on the citizenship laws worldwide. The Constitution of India led to the proper development of citizenship law in India. Furthermore, the nationality law was expanded by the Citizenship Act 1955, which is a comprehensive national legislation dealing with the legal aspects of citizenship. Although dual citizenship has been endorsed by most of the countries in some form or the other, the Constitution framers have rejected this concept. Similarly, Section 9 of the Citizenship Act, 1955 terminates Indian citizenship if citizenship of any other country is acquired. Thus, the Indian legal position is clear that dual citizenship is not permitted according to the present legal framework. For India, the debated question has always been whether it should change its stand on dual citizenship or continue with its current framework of single citizenship. As a developing country, India is battling with issues like overpopulation, poverty, illiteracy and unemployment. Dual citizenship comes with a heavy cost of a grave threat to national security, massive economic burden and conflict of laws. The debate of whether dual citizenship should be endorsed by India or not, is incomplete without considering its political, legal, social and economic implications.

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