Why in News
As applications start coming in through the online citizenship portal of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).
Some potential applicants are worried about their fate if rejected.
The law’s Rules, notified earlier this month, are silent regarding any review process for applications rejected by the empowered committees which have the final authority to accord citizenship under the Act.
Some potential applicants, including lakhs of people from the Matua community of West Bengal, entered the country decades ago and
have been living as Indian citizens for many years.
However, if their submitted documents now fail the scrutiny of the empowered committee, or if there is an adverse security clearance report about them, their applications for Indian citizenship under the CAA could be rejected.
Review procedure for CAA rejection?
If an application is rejected, people may end up in detention centres.
The parent law, the Citizenship Act, 1955, says that the applicant may file a review application before the Central government within 30 days.
The decision of the Central government on such review shall be final.
According to Aman Wadud, an Assam-based lawyer who has worked extensively on citizenship cases in the State.
The review of the rejection is to be done by the same authority, the empowered committee (as per Section 15 A of the Act).
In case the review is rejected, a writ petition can be filed before the High Court.”
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