Pakistani in India: 22 Pakistani women have been living in Uttar Pradesh's Moradabad for decades after marrying Indian men. All of them have a total of 95 children, many of whom are married and some have become grandmothers. In such a situation, the question arises that where will these children of Pakistani mother and Indian father be called citizens? Understand the whole law...

After the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, a lot of anger is being seen against Pakistan in India. In the Baisaran Valley, terrorists had asked the religion of the tourists and shot 26 tourists, most of whom were Hindus. India has taken a lot of action against Pakistan. One of the biggest actions was to cancel the visas of Pakistani citizens and send them back. Pakistani citizens are being selectively expelled from various cities of India. Meanwhile, a shocking case has come to light in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh. 22 women with Pakistani citizenship have been found here, who have been living here for decades after marrying Indian men. All of them now have 95 children, many of whom are married and some have become grandmothers.

After this news came out, it made headlines everywhere. It was also discussed a lot on social media. People were seen asking one question about this, will these children get Indian citizenship, or will they be called Pakistani? So let's understand this matter in detail and find out the answer to this question from the point of view of the citizenship laws of both the countries…

What is the whole matter?

These 22 Pakistani women living in Moradabad married Indian men and then settled here on long term visa. During this time, a total of 95 children were born to all of them, many of whom have now become adults. These children were born in India, and they can be considered entitled to Indian citizenship. But their mother is still a Pakistani citizen and the process of her citizenship is pending. This matter has sparked a new debate between India and Pakistan about citizenship laws.

What does the Indian citizenship law say?

The Citizenship Act of India, 1955 grants citizenship on the basis of birth, but there are many conditions in it. Persons born in India between 26 January 1950 and 1 July 1987 are automatically considered Indian citizens. At the same time, this law was changed in 1987. Then it was provided that for the citizenship of children born after 1 July 1987, at least one of the parents must be an Indian citizen.

The citizenship law was changed again in the year 2004. According to this, for children born after 3 December 2024, along with the Indian citizenship of one of the parents, a provision was also added that none of the parents should be illegal migrants.

In the case of Moradabad, these children were born in India and their father is an Indian citizen. Their mother may be Pakistani, but she is living in India on a valid visa, so they will not be considered 'illegal migrants'. On this basis, these children can be considered Indian citizens by birth.

The problem of Pakistani citizenship law

However, there may be a problem of Pakistani law in the citizenship of these children. If we talk about Pakistani law, there is importance of lineage, not birthplace. Pakistan's Citizenship Act, 1951 says that if either the mother or the father is a Pakistani citizen, then the child will also be considered a Pakistani citizen... even if he was born in India. That is, these 95 children automatically get Pakistani citizenship.

It is worth noting here that there is no provision for dual citizenship in India or Pakistan. India does not allow dual citizenship at all. This means that if a child wants Indian citizenship, he will have to renounce Pakistani citizenship. But this process does not happen automatically; for this, legal application, verification, and in this case diplomatic permission will also be necessary.

However, the ongoing tension between India and Pakistan can make this whole matter very complicated. After the Pahalgam terrorist attack on April 22, the Indian government has increased surveillance on Pakistanis. Pakistani citizens who came on short-term visas are being deported on a large scale. At the same time, investigation and surveillance has also been increased on those who have long-term visas. In such a situation, the visa validity of these women, the citizenship status of their husbands and the time of birth of the children, all three factors will prove to be decisive in deciding the citizenship of the children of these women.