Rajasthan HC asks govt for report on pending citizenship cases of Pakistan Hindu migrants

Expressing anger over the state government’s failure to submit details of pending citizenship cases of Pakistani Hindu migrants, the Rajasthan High Court on Thursday directed it to submit a report on the next hearing or ask the home secretary to be present.

On being asked by the court that why the report was not submitted, Additional Advocate General (AAG) K L Thakur said the CID had neither provided the exact figure of the migrants nor the number of pending citizenship cases.

The high court had taken suo moto cognisance of the large number of pending applications for citizenship and visas and had asked for the numbers of migrants who were awaiting citizenship despite being eligible for it. The high court had also sought a progress report on the same.

“It is shocking that the government has no figure of the pending citizenship cases,” said the division bench headed by justice Sangeet Lodha.

It directed the AAG to either submit the report by next hearing or ask the home secretary to be present to reply why the progress report could not be produced in the court.

Arguing on the issue, amicus curiae Kamal Dave said many applications pertaining to the long term and short term visa extensions as well as citizenship were pending and the CID was not clearing them.