CAA not to be implemented in tribal areas of Northeast

Most tribal areas in northeastern states, including those granted special status under the 6th Schedule of the Constitution, have been kept out of the purview of The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, which came into effect on Monday.

According to the law, it is also not going to be implemented in those northeastern states where Inner Line Permit (ILP) regime is in existence.

The ILP is in force in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur whereby anyone from other parts of the country seeking to visit these states needs special permission from the state government.

The tribal areas, where autonomous councils were created under the 6th Schedule, were also exempted from the purview of the CAA, officials said quoting from the law that was passed in 2019.

Such autonomous councils are in existence in Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura.

These include Karbi Anglong, Dima Hasao and Bodoland Territorial Council areas in Assam, Garo Hills in Meghalaya and tribal areas in Tripura.

The CAA seeks to grant citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis who came to India on or before December 31, 2014 from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after facing religious persecution.