Ministry says passport is not proof of citizenship

According to Indian media reports, a senior official of India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has said that the Indian passport is primarily a travel document and should not be considered as conclusive proof of citizenship.

The comments were made when the official sought to clarify the legal scope of the document in response to a question at an event organized on Wednesday to mark the expansion of passport services.

“Although a passport confirms your nationality when traveling abroad, it is not a document of your citizenship.” The Hindu The daily quoted the officer as saying this in response to his question.

The External Affairs Ministry’s clarification comes at a time when the Election Commission of India is carrying out a controversial revision of the voter list, which requires voters to submit documents to establish eligibility – including proof of citizenship.

People ask what proves Indian citizenship

The statement soon sparked debate on social media, with many users expressing confusion about what the Ministry of External Affairs meant and which documents establish proof of citizenship.

Some users shared pictures of their passports, which had “Indian” written next to the nationality, and asked how a passport does not prove citizenship.

Last year, the Supreme Court had also said that Aadhaar – India’s biometric identification scheme – is not conclusive proof of citizenship.

“Passport is not a document of citizenship. Aadhaar card is not a document of citizenship. Voter ID card is not a document of citizenship. Then what is the proof of this?” Another X post said.

Critics, opposition slam MEA’s remarks on passports

Veteran Indian screenwriter, lyricist and political activist Javed Akhtar described the ministry’s explanation as “absurd”.

“The Ministry of External Affairs says that passport is a travel document and not a proof of citizenship. Really???. So are they providing this travel document to some people without being completely sure that the person is an Indian citizen??” He wrote on X.

Some opposition politicians also criticized the statement of the Foreign Ministry.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray questioned whether the statement would “create doubt in the minds of other countries whether non-Indians get an Indian passport as a travel document?”

He said, “Beyond its extremely confused foreign policy, how much more absurd could the State Department be?”

Others took a dig at the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party-led government.

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra said, “It seems that today the only proof of Indian citizenship is to be both a Hindu and a BJP voter. Apart from this there will be nothing.”