Supreme Court Will Hear Challenge To Citizenship Amendment Act From May 5

The Supreme Court has scheduled the final hearing for 242 petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) and the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 and will start hearing the matters from May 5, 2026.

The CAA was passed by the Parliament in 2019, amending the Citizenship Act, 1955. Proviso to Section 2(1)(b) states that migrants who belong to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Parsi, Jain and Christian religions from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh are eligible for citizenship by naturalisation if they establish their residency in India for five years, instead of eleven years.

The Bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul M Pancholi ordered, "There are two sets of cases assailing the constitutionality of Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019...Initially, vide an order dated  22nd of January, 2020. These matters were sub-categorized in two groups: namely, one pertaining to Assam and Tripura, and the second group for the rest of the others. During the pre oral submissions, we find that it will be convenient, for the appreciation of the complex issues, a separate hearing is granted to the matters pertaining to Assam and Tripura, which can be listed after hearing the main case. Consequently, the Nodal Counsels, who have already been appointed, vide previous orders, will identify the matters falling in the First and second group and the list of case will be submitted to the registry within two weeks. The registry shall thereafter shall segregate the matters under two categories and the same shall be listed for final hearing in the week commencing on 5th May 2026..."

Senior Advocates Indira Jaisingh, Siddharth Luthra and MR Shamshad appeared for the Petitioners, while Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appeared for the Union of India.

The Court granted 4 weeks to the parties to submit new materials or additional written notes. The proceedings will begin in the week of May 5, 2026, starting with a full day dedicated to the petitioners’ arguments. This will be followed by a split schedule on May 6, where the petitioners will conclude their submissions in the first half and the respondents will begin their defence in the second. The respondents are slated to finish their arguments in the first half of May 7, with the Court setting May 12 as the final date for any rejoinder rebuttals. 

The implementation of the Act was temporarily extended due to nationwide protests against the Act, alleging it to be unconstitutional. In a significant development, on March 11, 2024, the Union Government notified the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024, which are in line with the 2019 CAA and provide for an online system for the applications, processing and grant of citizenship under CAA.

The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) filed separate Interlocutory Applications before the Supreme Court, both challenging the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 which were notified on March 11, 2024, by the Central Government, alleging that it is violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India, unconstitutional, discriminatory and manifestly arbitrary. The Court agreed to hear the petitions in March, 2024.

The Applications have been filed in the Writ Petitions filed by them in the year 2019, which are pending before the Supreme Court, against the enactment of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019(CAA). 

Today, during the hearing of pleas challenging the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) and Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024, Senior Advocate Indira Jaising opposed the grant of Citizenship to Hindus from Balochistan under the CAA on the ground that "they will get a right to vote." Indira Jaising's objection came when the Supreme Court was told by the lawyer for Balochistan Hindu Panchayat that granting citizenship to Hindus from Balochistan would not affect anyone else's rights.

On March 19, 2024, the Supreme Court adjourned pleas challenging the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) and Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 to April 9 for the Centre to file its counter affidavit to applications for stay. The Bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra directed that the proceedings be listed on April 9. The Bench refused to pass any interim order staying the grant of citizenship till then. The Bench also did not accede to the request to pass an order making the grant of citizenship subject to the outcome of the case.

The State of Kerala had also filed an application under Order 39 Rules 1 and 2 of the CPC and had sought a stay on the operation of the CAA and the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024. The State has contended in its application that it is now compelled to ensure compliance of the CAA and the Rules, which are, according to it, unconstitutional. "It is submitted that with the coming to force of the CAA Rules, the persons who have become entitled to citizenship as per the impugned Act will apply for citizenship and the plaintiff State is now compelled to ensure compliance of Impugned Amendment Act and the Rules and Orders, which, it is submitted, are unconstitutional", says the State in its application.

Several petitions have already been filed against the constitutional validity of the CAA and religion-based exclusions in the Act by various political leaders, groups, advocates and students since the notification of the CAA.

The Supreme Court has already issued notice in the main case and sought a response from the Union Government. In March 2020, the Government submitted their counter affidavit and stated that CAA was not affecting the citizenship of any Indian citizen and that mere under-inclusion of a category while granting benefits was not a ground to strike down a law.

In October 2022, the Centre had urged the Supreme Court to dismiss pleas challenging the validity of the CAA, stressing that the law does not encourage "illegal migration" in Assam or any future influx of foreigners in the country. It had also vehemently defended the exclusion of certain areas of Assam and other Northeastern states from the application of the CAA, saying it has been done to "protect the ethnic/linguistic rights" of the natives and this was "not discriminatory". It is a "focused law" that grants citizenship only to members of six specified communities who came on or before December 31, 2014, and does not affect the legal, democratic or secular rights of any Indian, the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a detailed 150-page affidavit.

"I strongly support the Citizenship Amendment Act", said former Judge of the Supreme Court, Justice KT Thomas, while speaking to the media in April, 2024. "The Congress had asked for it long back", he further said about the CAA. Justice KT Thomas said that protests and objections against the Citizenship Amendment Act are politically motivated. Justice Thomas also said that the Citizenship Amendment Act does not take away anybody's citizenship. While speaking on the Uniform Civil Code, Justice Thomas said, "Uniform Civil Code must be implemented in India immediately, immediately". He said that it is in the Constitution of India from the year 1950, in Article 44, that the Uniform Civil Code should be implemented.

Cause Title: Indian Union Muslim League and Ors. v. Union of India and Ors.[W.P. (C) 1470 of 2019] and other connected matters.