Intro: Central Government has given citizenship as a gift to over one lakh Sindhi and Sikh migrants who have completed 2.6 years of stay in India.
It’s time for celebration, as 11,000 city-based Sindhis and Sikhs, who migrated from Pakistan and Afghanistan prior to December 31, 2009, would get Indian citizenship.
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has reduced the minimum stay period of migrants of both countries from 7 years to 2.6 years. The orders in this regards were issued recently.
The Narendra Modi-led BJP Government has given this gift to over 1 lakh migrant Sindhis (Hindus) and Sikhs by granting them Indian citizenship, who completed 2.6 years of stay in India.
General Secretary of Sindhi Samaj of Indore, Prakash Parwani said that over 11,000 migrants of both the communities, residing in the city have got the benefit.
Out of them, 6,000 have already completed 7 years stay in India while the rest 5, 000 have completed 2.6 years of stay in Indore.
Parwani further said that local leaders of the Sindhi community had been doing efforts for long. After, change of power at Centre, a delegation of the local Sindhi leaders led by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan called on Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj on July 24 and 25, respectively, in New Delhi.
The delegation acquainted both the leaders about the problems being faced by these people. The announcement made by MHA is considered to be the outcome of those efforts.
It is to be noted that the Government of India on November 13, 2014 gave a number of concessions to Hindu and Sikh refugees from Pakistan and Afghanistan. The government also relaxed procedure for granting them Indian citizenship.
Rajnath Singh approved the proposal for manual acceptance of applications for granting Indian citizenship to minority community nationals of Pakistan and Afghanistan, who entered India prior to December 31, 2009.
PM fulfills his promise
Narendra Modi, during poll campaigning in West Bengal and Rajasthan, had said that Pakistani and Bangladeshi Hindu refugees would be treated like Indian citizens if he becomes the Prime Minister.
One lakh will get benefit
There are about one lakh minority community refugees from Pakistan and Afghanistan living in India. While approving the concessions, the Home Minister directed the Foreigners Division of his ministry that the grievances of these applicants should be addressed.
The move came two months after the Ministry agreed for setting up of a task force to monitor and expedite the process of the citizenship and Long Term Visa (LTV) applications of such persons. —Bureau Report
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