"Can non-citizens also get an Indian passport?" Netizens are asking what proves citizenship, as the MEA calls it a "travel document"

After the Ministry of External Affairs on Wednesday declared that the passport is only a travel document and not a citizenship document, social media users were in a frenzy, asking whether non-citizens can also get an Indian passport.

“The passport is issued after thorough vetting and is based on documents from several government agencies,” said an MEA official.

According to the government, the passport is the latest in a list of documents that do not serve as proof of citizenship and are merely proof of identity, including the Aadhaar card and voter ID card.

Read also | A passport is a travel document, not a citizenship document, says the MEA

Here is the answer to social media

Veteran writer Javed Akhtar reacted to MEA’s ‘passport is not proof of citizenship’ and asked whether the government issues Indian passports to non-citizens. “Ministry of External Affairs says passport is a travel document not a citizenship document. Really??? So they give this travel document to some people without being fully convinced that the person is an Indian citizen? It’s absurd,” he wrote.

Shiv Sena UBT leader Aaditya Thackeray also reacted and said, “Apart from its very confused foreign policy, how much more absurd can the MEA get?

Read also | The Center changes the “Rules for Citizenship”, introduces new norms for the publication of passports

Social media users termed it an “absurd” statement and asked what exactly proves Indian citizenship.

“So foreign nationals can also get an Indian passport?” the user asked.

“If passport is not proof of citizenship, Aadhaar is not proof and voter card is not proof… then WHAT is?” another user asked.

A netizen said: “I was trying to understand why the passport would show Indian nationality if it is not a proof of citizenship. Is our embassy responsible for us in urgent cases, or if it is just a travel document now, does the consular assistance become invalid?”

“Citizenship Act 1955 → determines whether you are a citizen. Passport Act 1967 → provides passport to authorized persons, primarily citizens. It is a serious offense if any government official offered passports to foreign nationals. Government of India stated that “Passport is not proof of citizenship”, the user did not want to be punished. Because they did not punish.

“But here’s the interesting thing: the passport is only issued to Indian citizens, but it doesn’t prove citizenship by itself,” said another user.

Read also | MHA revises Citizenship Rules, OCI registration

A netizen asked how exactly he should find out that he is a “native Indian” – “According to what I submitted for the passport:-

2) 10th Marksheet provided by CBSE

3) High school leaving certificate

4) Postgraduate certificate

One user sarcastically said that at this point only a BJP membership card would prove citizenship.

“At this point we might need a forehead tattoo in our mother tongue to prove citizenship,” another user joked.