No Indian will be harassed by asking to submit old documents to prove citizenship: MHA

No Indian citizen will be unduly harassed or put to inconvenience by asking to prove citizenship by showing documents like birth certificates of parents or grandparents dating back to a period before 1971, the Home Ministry said on December 20. In a series of tweets, a ministry spokesperson said illiterate citizens not having any documents, will be allowed to produce witnesses or local proofs supported by members of community.

"#Citizenship of India may be proved by giving any document relating to date of birth or place of birth or both. Such a list is likely to include a lot of common documents to ensure that no Indian citizen is unduly harassed or put to inconvenience," the spokesperson said.

#Citizenship of India may be proved by giving any document relating to date of birth or place of birth or both. Such a list is likely to include a lot of common documents to ensure that no Indian citizen is unduly harassed or put to inconvenience.#CAA2019

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— Spokesperson, Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) December 20, 2019

Illiterate citizens, who may not have any documents, authorities may allow them to produce witnesses or local proofs supported by members of community. A well laid out procedure will be followed.#CAA2019

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— Spokesperson, Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) December 20, 2019

A well laid-out procedure in this regard will be issued by the home ministry.

"Indian citizens do not have to prove any ancestry by presenting documents like identity cards, birth certificates etc of parents/grandparents dating back to pre-1971 situation," the spokesperson said.

Indian citizens do not have to prove any ancestry by presenting documents like identity cards, birth certificates etc of parents/grand parents dating back to pre-1971 situation. #CAA2019

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— Spokesperson, Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) December 20, 2019

The tweets came a week after the Citizenship Amendment Act was passed by the Parliament and assented by the President last week.

According to the CAA, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014 and facing religious persecution there will not be treated as illegal immigrants, and be given Indian citizenship.