194 OCI registrations cancelled under citizenship law since 2014: RTI
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) cancelled 57 Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) registrations under Section 7D of the Citizenship Act, 1955, in 2024, which was nearly half the number of cancellations in the previous 10 years, according to data obtained by The Hindu under the Right to Information Act.
The MHA executed the cancellations under Section 7D 122 times from 2014 to 2023 (decadal data until mid-2023 was first reported that year by legal news portal Article 14), 57 times in 2024, and fifteen times until May 19 this year.
British academic Nitasha Kaul received a notice about the cancellation of her OCI registration under Section 7D this month.
'Through your numerous inimical writings, speeches, and journalistic activities at various international forums and on social media platforms, you regularly target India and its institutions on the matters of India's sovereignty,' stated the Union government's notice to Ms. Kaul.
The academic has called the move a 'vindictive, cruel example of transnational repression' while accusing the Central government of 'targeting' her for her views.
Under Section 7D, the Union government can issue notice to an OCI holder and cancel their registration, essentially barring them from entering India, on any of the these four grounds: the use of fraudulent means to obtain the OCI, withholding of information, displaying 'disaffection' with the Constitution, and aiding an 'enemy' during a war.
OCI is the Indian response to demands for recognition of dual nationality, and OCI card holders, typically people of Indian descent who no longer live in the country or foreign nationals married to Indians, have historically been able to travel freely within India and work in the country, with the caveat that they cannot vote or own agricultural land.
OCI cancellations have spiked in recent years. Some of the people whose registrations were cancelled have linked the actions with their political views and dissent.
In 2021, the Union government added further restrictions on OCI registrations by requiring an additional permit from the MHA for journalists, missionaries, and mountaineers. French journalist Vanessa Dougnac's registration was cancelled in 2024, but she was reissued the card in March this year.
The OCI registration of Sweden-based academic Ashok Swain was cancelled in 2023. He alleged that he was being 'witch-hunted' for his views on the 'political dispensation of the current government'. The Delhi High Court cancelled the order revoking his OCI in March while allowing the government to restart the process.
U.S. journalist Raphael Satter, working for the newswire agency Reuters, similarly had his OCI registration revoked in 2023. Mr. Satter approached the Delhi High Court against it this March. The court has issued a notice to the Union government. The case has been scheduled for Thursday.
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