KOCHI: In a significant ruling, the Kerala High Court has directed the Union government to grant Indian citizenship to two sisters born in Pakistan, without insisting on a certificate of renunciation of Pakistani citizenship from the government there.
Justice T R Ravi issued the order following a petition filed by Rasheeda Bano of Kannur, seeking Indian citizenship for her daughters Sumaira Maroof, 21, and Mariam Maroof, 24.
The petition highlighted that the sisters’ father, Mohammed Maroof, was born at Kottayam-Malabar village in Kannur. He became an orphan at the age of nine, and was adopted by his grandmother, who later migrated to Pakistan along with him in 1977.
Subsequently, Maroof, who is now employed in the United Arab Emirates, obtained a Pakistani passport. Later, he married Rasheeda, who is his uncle’s daughter, and took her to Pakistan. Both daughters of the couple were born there. In 2008, Maroof’s family moved to India with permission from the Union government to stay in the country for a specific time frame, which has been extended from time to time.
The Union government had initially rejected the citizenship plea of the sisters, citing the non-acceptance of no-objection certificates forwarded by the Pakistan High Commission and insisting on a renunciation certificate. However, the petitioners argued that the Pakistani Embassy would issue a renunciation certificate only after they attain the age of 21 years, and in their cases, such certificates cannot be issued even after reaching this age, as they had already surrendered their Pakistani passports before turning 21. The High Court acknowledged that the requirement for the renunciation certificate should be treated as a rule of evidence and cannot be considered a substantive requirement. It emphasised that the petitioners had surrendered their Pakistani passports and had no intention of returning to Pakistan as Pakistani nationals.
Furthermore, the Pakistan High Commission had issued certificates declaring no objection to the Indian government granting nationality to the petitioners.
The court deemed these documents sufficient to demonstrate the renunciation of Pakistani citizenship and directed the Union government to issue the necessary order within three months.
Case details
Justice T R Ravi issued the order following a petition filed by Rasheeda Bano of Kannur, seeking Indian citizenship for her daughters Sumaira Maroof and Mariam Maroof. The Union government had initially rejected the citizenship plea of the sisters, citing the non-acceptance of no-objection certificates forwarded by the Pakistan High Commission and insisting on a renunciation certificate