Venkat Raman
Auckland, October 1, 2024
Contrary to information circulating in some sections of social media, the Indian government has neither withdrawn the privileges granted to holders of the Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) nor imposed any fresh restrictions on their movement.
Indian government sources said that such information is false, designed to deliberately mislead people and create misconceptions.
According to comments posted on the Facebook page of Indians Living in Auckland (this is arguably the largest group of its kind with almost 50,000 members), “Non-Resident Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) from across the globe expressed concerns regarding India’s regulations for OCI cardholders with stricter controls on activities and reclassify them as foreign nationals, as outlined in a bulletin from India’s Home Ministry. These changes impact travel, business, religious activities, and more for the Indian diaspora.”
The Consulate General of India in New York (USA), quoting Home Ministry sources, said in a bulletin that there have been no such fresh instructions issued.
“No new change has been introduced, since the Gazette Notification dated March 4, 2021,” the bulletin said, adding that the rights of OCI cardholders remain in force.
OCI card holders are foreigners
The problem here is the term Non-Resident Indians or NRIs.
NRIs are Indian nationals, holding Indian passports who are not ordinarily resident in India. They are typically migrant workers, international students and people who are away from their motherland for a length of time but have not taken foreign citizenship. They are not covered by the OCI.
Now, the term Overseas Citizenship of India is also misleading.
It does not accord Indian Citizenship to foreign nationals (such as those currently holding New Zealand passports) but insists that those acquiring foreign citizenship must surrender their Indian passport to the nearest Indian High Commission (the Indian Embassy) or the Consulate General’s Office. People who do not comply and people who continue to travel on an Indian Passport after acquiring citizenship of another country are liable for prosecution and denial of entry into India.
OCI is a Scheme that allows People of Indian Origin to visit India without visas and stay in the country uninterrupted, without the need to report to law enforcement agencies such as the Police, as may be required in the case of other nationals.
The wider term, ‘Indian Diaspora’ is applied to all people with roots in India. They could be people who had once held Indian passports and or people who have never held Indian passports such as the descendants of indentured labourers taken to various parts of the world including Fiji, the African Continent, South Asia, Indian Ocean countries and others.
OCI Cardholders are allowed to own properties, own and operate companies (subject to regulations in some sectors) and work in the private sector in India.
Restrictions on movement
The government definition of a Person of Indian Origin is that such a person is usually one who has never had an Indian Passport, born to parents, grandparents and ancestors who left India before January 26, 1950 and given up Indian citizenship, having become citizens of the country to which they migrated.
Restriction of foreign nationals from visiting sensitive areas such as Jammu and Kashmir, parts of Arunachal Pradesh, and other territories is to ensure their safety. It should not be treated as a restrictive practice.
Most countries require journalists to inform the competent authorities before their visit for reporting, broadcasting or any other form of communication including social media posts.
The following report appeared in Indian Newslink on March 7, 2021:
An official Home Ministry notification issued in New Delhi on March 4, 2021 has removed some rights of the movement of former Indian nationals and Persons of Indian Origin (PIO), raising eyebrows and angering some lobby groups.
All people currently holding Overseas Citizenship of India Cards (or OCI Cardholders) are people of Indian origin. The OCI Scheme, which was suspended last year with the outbreak of Covid-19 has been revived. Those holding OCI Cards can therefore travel to India as they had done in the past.
The Notification, which has entered the Indian Government’s official Gazette, states that OCI cardholders must obtain ‘A Special Permission’ or a ‘Special Permit’ from a competent authority (usually from Indian Embassies and High Commissions) in various countries or from the Foreigners Regional Registration Officer (FRRO) to undertake Research, Missionary or Tabligh or Mountaineering or Journalistic activities.
The notification also requires Special Permission or Special Permit for all OCI Cardholders to undertake an internship in any foreign diplomatic missions or foreign government organisations in India or employment in any foreign diplomatic missions in India and visit any place which falls within the Protected or Restricted or Prohibited Areas as notified by the Central Government or competent authority.”
Many may not be aware that many of the restrictions have been in place for long, although not strictly enforced. For instance, journalists (including OCI Cardholders and PIO) are not allowed to visit India for journalistic purposes unless a special permit is obtained prior to travel. Journalists accompanying Heads of State and Prime Ministers of governments receive such Permits through their diplomatic missions overseas.
OCI and PIO
It is important to note that on January 9, 2005, the government merged PIO Cards with that of OCI, removing some of the differences that existed. Until then, a person who held an OCI Card was a former national of India holding an Indian passport.
The new rules are a reassertion of fresh guidelines issued by the Home Ministry in India on November 15, 2019, covering a range of issues.
For instance, it states that OCI Cardholders will be treated as ‘Non Resident Indians’ (NRIs) (who are citizens of India who do not normally live in India) and claim quota seats in educational institutions based on All India Entrance Tests such as National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), Joint Entrance Examination (Mains), Joint Entrance Examination (Advanced) or such other All India Professional Tests.
However, OCI Cardholders cannot sit for the Indian Foreign Service, Indian Administrative Service and similar Central and State Government Services.
They cannot contest or vote in any election-Federal, States, Councils, Panchayats and so on. OCI Cardholders cannot also apply for government jobs.
No Dual Citizenship Scheme
The notification reiterates that OCI cardholders are those who hold foreign passports and hence cannot be deemed as citizens of India. It also reiterates that India does not allow dual citizenship but provides certain benefits under Section 7B (1) of the Citizenship Act 1955.
In 2003, the then Home Minister Lal Krishna Advani proposed the Dual Citizenship Scheme as a part of a wider conversation but the proposal was later dropped.
Not many countries allow Dual Citizenship. Prominent among them are Austria, the Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, Nepal and countries of the Arab Gulf.
