Team Goemkarponn
Panaji: In what is being seen as one of the first cases of its kind in the state, the Government of India has granted Indian citizenship to a Pakistani national residing in Goa, under the recently notified Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024.
According to official documents, Mr. Brenden Valentine Crasto, a Pakistani citizen currently residing in Anjuna, North Goa, applied for Indian citizenship under the provisions of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. He has been residing in India continuously since December 2006 and married an Indian citizen, Mrs. Merilyn Fernandes, in 2014.
Authorities have confirmed that Mr. Crasto fulfilled all eligibility criteria under Section 6B of the Citizenship Act, 1955, and Section 5(1)(c), which provides for citizenship by registration for those married to Indian nationals.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, reacting to the development, said:
“The Citizenship (Amendment) Act has finally given justice to many who have been living in India for years without proper legal status. Goa has also received its first case under this law, showing how the Act is helping genuine applicants who meet all conditions. This will provide them dignity, security, and a rightful place in society.”
The Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 were notified on March 11 this year, paving the way for Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, who entered India on or before December 31, 2014, to apply for Indian citizenship.
