ISSUES WITH RESPECT TO OVERSEAS CITIZEN OF INDIA CARD HOLDER

AUTHOR – SANDHYA PRABHAKARAN* & MS. SWATI KAUSHAL**,

* STUDENT AT AMITY LAW SCHOOL, NOIDA, BBA LL.B. (H).

** ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AT AMITY LAW SCHOOL, NOIDA, AMITY UNIVERSITY UTTAR PRADESH

BEST CITATION – SANDHYA PRABHAKARAN & MS. SWATI KAUSHAL, ISSUES WITH RESPECT TO OVERSEAS CITIZEN OF INDIA CARD HOLDER, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 5 (4) OF 2025, PG. 119-131, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.

ABSTRACT

Overseas Citizen of India Card Holder is a concept of citizenship granted by the Citizenship Act, 1955 in accordance with Part II of the Constitution of India. This concept was developed in order to recognize the Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) and grant the deserving individuals Indian citizenship who were eligible for such citizenship at the time of commencement of the Constitution of India. In the year 2000, the Government of India decided to establish a committee for the purpose of examination of the global Indian diaspora along with recommendations and strategies for fostering a constructive relationship with them. The report of the committee laid the foundation for the introduction of the concept of Overseas Citizenship. The Citizenship Act, 1955 was amended in the year 2003 for the purpose of formally including the scope of overseas citizenship along with including certain provisions for illegal immigrants. Foreign nations with Indian origin for a long period have been making requests to the Government of India for providing them with a recognition for their Indian roots, thus the Overseas Citizen of India Card Holder (OCI Card Holder) had been brought into picture. This brought in various questions to be raised, one of them is majorly whether or not India recognizes dual-citizenship. This paper will highlight the need of the concept of OCI, the issues and challenges associated with it and a comparison with the US system of Green Card Holder.

Keywords: Indian Citizenship, Overseas Citizen of India, Citizenship Act, 1955, Constitution of India, Amendment to Citizenship Act, 1955.