Indian citizens don't have to prove any ancestry: MHA

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday quelled different rumours being floated in various quarters of social media and said that Indian citizens do not have to prove any ancestry by presenting documents like identity cards, birth certificates etc of parents or grandparents.

"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," MHA Spokesperson tweeted.

"Indian citizens do not have to prove any ancestry by presenting documents like identity cards, birth certificates etc of parents or grandparents dating back to pre-1971 situation," Spokesperson said in another tweet.

The ministry also said that illiterate citizens without any documents may be allowed by authorities to prove their citizenship.

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

The clarification by the home ministry comes at a time when different protests both in favor and against of CAA are being witnessed in the state.

Protests had intensified in several parts of the country after the Parliament gave the nod to the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019, which became an Act after getting assent from President Ram Nath Kovind.

The Act grants Indian citizenship to refugees from Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and Parsi communities fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh who entered India on or before 31, 2014.