No information on the procedure for a foreigner married to an Indian citizen to become a permanent resident of India and/or a naturalized Indian citizen could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

However, the following excerpts from an article published in Tolley's Immigration and Nationality: Law and Practice may be of interest:

Faced with pressure to recognise the presence of foreign business interests and personnel, recent Indian courts decisions have given a resoundingly negative message. The Supreme Court of India, in the matter of Louis De Raedt v Union of India (AIR 1991 SC 1886) held at p 1890:

'The fundamental right of the foreigner is confined to Article 21 for life and liberty and does not include the right to reside and settle in this country, as mentioned in Article 19(1)(e), which is applicable only to the citizens of this country'.

This Supreme Court ruling was also reiterated in the case of Fred Howard Haering (AIR 1996 HP 27) ... . Very recently, the High Court of Madras, in David John Hopkins v Union of India (AIR 1997 Madras 367), held that the Government of India has unrestricted powers to refuse citizenship to foreign nationals without giving any reason whatsoever, and foreign nationals cannot claim equality before the law under Article 14 of the Constitution of India, while this fundamental right is guaranteed to Indian nationals. The High Court, while affirming the earlier line of judicial thought in Louis De Raedt (AIR 1991 SC 1886) and Hans Muller (AIR 1955 SC 367) sternly decided that foreign nationals do not have any fundamental right guaranteed for the granting of Indian citizenship (1998, 18).

Information on naturalization in India can also be found in IND18870.E of 2 November 1994 and ZZZ29496.E of 10 June 1998.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Tolley's Immigration and Nationality: Law and Practice [London]. 1998. Vol. 12, No. 1. Ranjit Malhotra. "Indian Law relating to foreigners and passports with special reference to executive immigration."

IRB databases

LEXIS/NEXIS

Letter and telephone call to the Indian High Commission in Ottawa