No person shall be a citizen of India by virtue of article 5, or be deemed to be a citizen of India by virtue of article 6 or article 8, if he has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of any foreign State.
Articles 9, 10 and 11 of the Constitution of India: Citizenship Explained
Articles 9, 10 and 11 form part of Part II of the Constitution of India. They address the effect of voluntarily acquiring foreign citizenship, the continuance of constitutional citizenship, and Parliament's power to make laws on acquisition, termination and other matters relating to citizenship.
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Article 9 - Persons voluntarily acquiring citizenship of a foreign State not to be citizens
Article 9 deals with a person who would otherwise be a citizen under Article 5, or be deemed to be a citizen under Article 6 or Article 8, but who has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of a foreign State.
Text of Article 9:
In simple terms, Article 9 prevents a person from relying on Articles 5, 6 or 8 for Indian citizenship where that person has voluntarily acquired citizenship of a foreign State. The provision should be read with Article 11 and the citizenship law enacted by Parliament.
Article 10 - Continuance of the rights of citizenship
Article 10 protects the continuance of citizenship for persons who are citizens, or are deemed citizens, under the preceding provisions of Part II. That continuance is expressly subject to any law made by Parliament.
Text of Article 10:
Every person who is or is deemed to be a citizen of India under any of the foregoing provisions of this Part shall, subject to the provisions of any law that may be made by Parliament, continue to be such citizen.
The phrase "subject to the provisions of any law that may be made by Parliament" connects Article 10 with Parliament's legislative authority under Article 11.
Article 11 - Parliament to regulate the right of citizenship by law
Article 11 preserves Parliament's power to legislate comprehensively on citizenship even though Articles 5 to 10 contain constitutional rules concerning citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution.
Text of Article 11:
Nothing in the foregoing provisions of this Part shall derogate from the power of Parliament to make any provision with respect to the acquisition and termination of citizenship and all other matters relating to citizenship.
Parliament exercised this constitutional power by enacting the Citizenship Act, 1955, which contains statutory rules concerning acquisition and termination of Indian citizenship and related matters.
Citizenship Act, 1955 and termination of citizenship
The Citizenship Act, 1955 is the principal parliamentary legislation governing Indian citizenship. For the subject covered by Article 9, Section 9 is particularly relevant.
Section 9 - Termination of citizenship
Section 9(1), subject to its statutory proviso, provides that an Indian citizen who voluntarily acquires the citizenship of another country by naturalisation, registration or otherwise ceases to be an Indian citizen upon that acquisition. Section 9(2) provides for determination of a question concerning whether, when or how citizenship of another country was acquired by the prescribed authority and in the prescribed manner.
Important: Article 9 is a constitutional provision, while the Citizenship Act, 1955 supplies the statutory framework governing citizenship after commencement of the Constitution. Questions about loss or termination of citizenship should therefore be examined under the applicable constitutional and statutory provisions together.
Official text: Constitution of India - Legislative Department and Citizenship Act, 1955 - India Code.
Articles 9, 10 and 11 at a glance
| Provision | Subject | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Article 9 | Voluntary acquisition of foreign citizenship | A person who voluntarily acquired citizenship of a foreign State cannot claim Indian citizenship by virtue of Article 5 or deemed citizenship under Article 6 or Article 8. |
| Article 10 | Continuance of citizenship | Citizenship under the preceding provisions of Part II continues, subject to a law made by Parliament. |
| Article 11 | Parliament's legislative power | Parliament may legislate on acquisition and termination of citizenship and all other citizenship matters. |
This page provides general legal information. For an individual citizenship matter, the applicable facts, statutory provisions, rules and official determination may need separate examination.