The Burden of Belonging: India’s Unresolved Citizenship Question

The burden of belonging: India’s unresolved citizenship question

Nearly 79 years after Independence, India continues to struggle with a basic question: Who is an Indian citizen?The ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has once again brought the issue of citizenship, illegal migration, and voter identity into public debate. The discussion is not new. For decades, governments of different political parties have spoken about illegal migration as a threat to national security, demographic b…

Electoral Revision and the Crisis of Citizenship in India: Democracy is Measured by its Protection of the Vulnerable, not by Exclusion

India is neither Nazi Germany nor Myanmar, and historical comparisons should never be employed simplistically. However, comparative political sociology reveals a recurring lesson: when citizenship becomes tied to ideological notions of national authenticity, minorities disproportionately bear the burden of proving belonging.