The Bill seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to make illegal migrants who are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, excluding Muslims, from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan eligible for Indian citizenship.
Demonstrators display placards and shout slogans during a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill, a bill that seeks to give citizenship to religious minorities persecuted in neighbouring Muslim countries, in Ahmedabad. (Reuters Photo)
New Delhi: The Lok Sabha on Monday passed the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 after a six-hour long debate following a fiery defensive speech by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
The Bill seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to make illegal migrants who are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, excluding Muslims, from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan eligible for Indian citizenship. The Bill relaxes the requirement of residence in India from 11 years to six years for these migrants.
During the passage of the Bill in the Lok Sabha, among a total of 391 members present in the Lower House, 311 voted in favour while 80 voted against it.
Here’s a quick News18 quiz over the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 for readers to take part:
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Source: News18