As many as 16 Chinese nationals were granted Indian citizenship since 2007 and the applications of 10 are pending, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.
DMK’s Tiruchi Siva asked details about the asylum and citizenship requests of communities from China, including Tibetans, Uyghurs, Mongolians and other democratic dissidents since 2019 and Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said in a written response, “As per data available in the online citizenship module, 10 applications of Chinese nationals are pending for grant of citizenship. Further, 16 Chinese nationals have been granted Indian citizenship since 2007. Only nationality wise data is maintained. Community-wise data is not maintained.
India was not a signatory to the 1951 U.N. Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol thereon. “All foreign nationals (including asylum seekers) are governed by the provisions contained in The Foreigners Act, 1946, The Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939, The Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920 and The Citizenship Act, 1955. Data on requests for asylum is not centrally maintained,” the reply stated.
China’s protest in 2016
In 2016, China lodged a strong protest with India after Uyghur activist Dolkun Isa announced that he had been granted visa to attend a conference in Dharamsala from April 28-May 1.
China protested the move, saying Isa had a red corner notice against him and was a “wanted terrorist.”
India later revoked Isa’s visa and that of two other activists- Hong Kong based Kay Wong and Lu Jinghua, a U.S national of Chinese descent.
The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson had said that “there was no conference”, terming the gathering instead a meeting with the Dalai Lama.
