Guwahati, 03 September (HS): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday said that only three individuals have been granted Indian citizenship in the state under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA).

The announcement comes amid long-standing fears and speculations that the Act would allow lakhs of foreigners to gain Indian citizenship in Assam.

“Till date, just three persons have been conferred citizenship under the CAA in Assam,” Sarma told reporters during an official programme. According to him, the state has so far received 12 applications in total, of which three have been cleared while nine are still pending.

Pointing to the low number of applicants, the CM said, “There was a widespread campaign that 20–25 lakh people would be given citizenship. Today, with only 12 applications, people can themselves judge the relevance of such claims.”

Among the first to benefit was 50-year-old Dulon Das, who, in August 2024, became the first individual in Assam to acquire Indian citizenship under the amended law.

The CAA provides a pathway to Indian citizenship for Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Christians, Buddhists and Parsis who faced religious persecution in Bangladesh, Pakistan or Afghanistan, provided they entered India before December 31, 2014 and have lived in the country for at least five years.

Although Parliament passed the CAA in December 2019, the law was put into effect only on March 11, 2024, following the notification of rules. The Centre has also directed state governments not to send cases of non-Muslim illegal immigrants to Foreigners Tribunals (FTs) until their applications for citizenship under the Act are decided.

With just three approvals so far in Assam, the extent of CAA’s implementation in the state remains far smaller than the political discourse around it, though the issue continues to trigger heated debate.

Hindusthan Samachar / Sriprakash