Pakistani national Seema Haider, who illegally entered India with her four children last year and now resides in Greater Noida, on Monday appreciated the government’s decision to notify the rules of implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
Haider, who had adopted Hinduism and married Greater Noida resident Sachin Meena, also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the decision and asserted that the CAA would help her get Indian citizenship.
However, Haider will not be a direct beneficiary of the CAA, which was passed by Parliament to facilitate citizenship for undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014.
“The Indian government has implemented the Citizenship (Amendment) Act today in our country. We are very happy about it and congratulate the government for it. Truly, what Modi ji has done what he had promised. I will be indebted to them throughout my life and keep thanking them,” Haider said in a video message.
“On this happy occasion, I congratulate my brother advocate A P Singh for his work as now my citizenship-related obstacles would also be removed with this law,” the Pakistani national said, before signing off with salutations of “Jai Shri Ram”, “Radhe Radhe” and “Bharat Mata ki Jai,” she added.
Advocate Singh also hailed the Centre’s announcement and said the decision would help people of different religions from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who were facing citizenship-related problems in India.
“It’s a big day for the people who were persecuted in these countries and somehow managed a living here (India),” Singh said.
Last month, Seema Haider’s Pakistani husband Ghulam Haider hired an Indian lawyer to seek the custody of their four children.
Seema, who hails from Jacobabad in Pakistan’s Sindh province, in May last year took her children and left her home in Karachi to travel to India via Nepal. She captured the headlines in July when Indian authorities found her living with Indian national (now her husband) Sachin Meena in Greater Noida.
The Centre on Monday implemented the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, notifying the rules four years after the contentious law was passed by Parliament to fast-track citizenship for undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014.
With the unveiling of the rules that came days ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections, the Modi government will now start granting Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants — Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians — from the three countries. The rules comes into force with immediate effect, according to a Gazette notification.
(with inputs from PTI)
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