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Synopsis

The Kerala High Court has has directed the Indian government to grant citizenship to two women who migrated from Pakistan as minors, without requiring them to produce a Renunciation Certificate, ruling that minors surrendering Pakistani Passport while migrating to India is sufficient proof of renunciation of Pakistani Citizenship.

The case, heard by Justice T.R. Ravi, involved a petition by a mother seeking citizenship for her two daughters, aged 21 and 24. The family had migrated to India in 2008 after living in the UAE. They had surrendered their Pakistani passports upon entry into India, but were unable to obtain a Renunciation Certificate from the Pakistani government due to the age restrictions stipulated by Pakistani Citizenship Rules. The Union Government denied their citizenship applications due to their inability to provide the certificate, which is required under Indian law to prove renunciation of Pakistani citizenship.

The court held that the requirement for a Renunciation Certificate should be seen as a rule of evidence rather than a substantive requirement. The court noted that the petitioners had already provided sufficient proof of their renunciation of Pakistani citizenship, including a no-objection certificate from the Pakistan High Commission and evidence of their surrendered passports.

“The petitioners surrendered their Pakistani passports when they were minors at the time of migration, and they cannot travel back to Pakistan claiming to be Pakistani citizens. They are remaining in India based on permission granted by the Indian Government and they also have been informed that the Indian Government will grant them citizenship by registration on the production of the renunciation certificate. Over and above, the Pakistan High Commission has also issued NOCs stating that they have no objection to the petitioners 2 and 3 being granted Indian Nationality and their passports have already been surrendered,” stated the court.

Further, the court emphasised that that the petitioners had no intention or possibility of returning to Pakistan, making the production of a Renunciation Certificate an undue burden, stating “The requirement for the renunciation certificate can only be treated as a rule of evidence and cannot be treated as a substantive requirement. It is evident that the petitioners do not intend to and cannot also go back to Pakistan as Pakistani nationals, as they had surrendered their Pakistani passports long back when they migrated.”

The court criticised the strict interpretation of the rules, which would otherwise render the petitioners' applications unprocessable due to their minor status at the time of migration, while acknowledging that the Pakistani authorities had issued a no-objection certificate, which should suffice for the Indian government's requirements.

In light of these findings, the Court directed the Union Government to process the citizenship applications of the petitioners without insisting on the Renunciation Certificate.

 

Cause Title: Rasheeda Bano v UOI [WP(C) No 18750 of 2022]