The Ministry of External Affairs has sparked a massive debate by reiterating that an Indian passport is a travel document and not conclusive proof of citizenship. The clarification has ignited a political slugfest, with the opposition linking the passport row to a potential backdoor National Register of Citizens, while the ruling party accuses rivals of spreading misinformation over a long-standing legal position. The controversy raises a fundamental question regarding what legally establishes an Indian as a citizen, given that documents like Aadhaar, PAN, and voter IDs serve primarily as identity or taxation records rather than citizenship proofs. So, what makes an Indian...Indian? Watch as top legal experts Harish Salve and Sidharth Luthra decode the citizenship question. Harish Salve said, "A passport is not a document to prove citizenship within your country, legally. A passport is an international convention. If I'm an Indian passport holder and I come to the United Kingdom or I go to France, and I say, "I'm an Indian citizen," I show them my passport, they can't say, "How did you get an Indian passport?" That passport is conclusive proof of my Indian citizenship outside India."
