PM Narendra Modi is Indian by birth, needs no citizenship certificate: PMO

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a citizen of India by birth and that question of him having a citizenship certificate does not arise, this is the response given by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on an RTI filed asking about his citizen certificate.

The RTI was filed by one Subhankar Sarkar on January 17, 2020. The applicant had asked to show the citizenship certificate of PM Narendra Modi.

PMO's response

In response to his RTI, the Under Secretary of the PMO Praveen Kumar wrote: "Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is a citizen of India by birth in terms of Section 3 of the Citizenship Act, 1955 and as such the question of his having a citizenship certificate which is for citizenship by registration does not arise."

Siasat Daily, which reported on the story, said the the response of Prime Minister's Office is ambiguous and unclear.

Senior journalist Seemi Pasha also tweeted the copy of RTI and the response therein by the PMO.

Protesting against CAA a month ago, filmmaker Anurag Kashyap had also demanded PM Narendra Modi to show his degree and birth certificate.

CAA protest

Ever since the Citizen Amendment Act has been brought by the Narendra Modi government, there has been an all-round protest against the Act.

The CAA facilitates non-Muslim refugees fleeing prosecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan getting Indian citizenship. Muslims from those countries were not given such eligibility.

The amendment has been widely criticised as discriminating on the basis of religion.

Critics say CAA will be used, along with the National Register of Citizens (NRC), to render many Muslim citizens stateless, as they may be unable to meet stringent birth or identity proof requirements.