Citizenship in limbo: Why Assam’s Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) Pathway struggled to gain traction

August 1, 2026

The Assam government shifted its policy in 2025 to encourage eligible individuals to apply for citizenship under India's Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) rather than face Foreigners Tribunal proceedings, yet only six people have received citizenship after more than a year of implementation. The CAA, which came into force in 2024, provides a fast-track citizenship pathway for non-Muslim religious minorities from neighboring countries who entered India before 2014, but many eligible Bengali Hindus fear that applying under this law could undermine their existing citizenship claims before tribunals. This policy has created a controversial dual-track system where non-Muslims are shielded from tribunal scrutiny while Muslims continue facing proceedings with risks of detention and deportation.

Who is affected

Dipali Das and five other individuals who received citizenship under the CAA
Approximately 500,000 Bengali Hindus excluded from the National Register of Citizens (NRC)
1.9 million people excluded from the final NRC list
70 people who applied under the CAA
73,759 people with cases pending before Foreigners Tribunals
172,673 people declared foreigners since tribunals were established
Montu Das and his wife Nisharani Das (excluded from NRC)
Anjali Roy (previously designated as "doubtful voter")
27 people whose foreigner declarations were set aside by the Supreme Court
Muslim residents of Assam who continue facing tribunal proceedings
Bengali Hindu families contesting citizenship claims
Citizens' Rights Preservation Committee (CRPC) and its represented families

What action is being taken

The Assam government is implementing a policy to identify CAA-eligible individuals and assist them in applying for citizenship
District commissioners and senior police officials are being instructed not to pursue certain Foreigners Tribunal cases involving CAA-eligible people
Foreigners Tribunals continue to decide citizenship disputes and process the 73,759 pending cases
Six people have been granted citizenship certificates under the CAA
District officials are being directed to submit periodic progress reports on the initiative

Why it matters

This situation matters because it affects the fundamental citizenship rights and legal status of potentially hundreds of thousands of people in Assam, creating risks of statelessness with profound consequences for their freedom of movement, educational opportunities, and political access. The policy has established a discriminatory dual-track system that treats people differently based on religion, shielding non-Muslims from tribunal scrutiny while Muslims continue facing proceedings with detention and deportation risks. The extremely low uptake of the CAA pathway (only six citizenships granted from 70 applications) despite the government's stated intention to help eligible individuals reveals that fear of undermining existing citizenship claims is preventing people from accessing the intended relief, leaving them trapped in prolonged legal uncertainty. Legal scholars question whether the Foreigners Tribunals provide adequate safeguards for cases carrying risks of statelessness, as these bodies may lack the independence, impartiality, and legal competence required for such consequential adjudication.

What's next

District officials are expected to submit periodic progress reports on identifying and assisting CAA-eligible individuals
The 73,759 pending Foreigners Tribunal cases will continue to be processed and adjudicated
Fresh hearings have been ordered for the 27 people whose foreigner declarations were set aside by the Supreme Court on July 13, 2026

Read full article from source: Global Voices