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Commercial's The Citizenship Act, 1955 (Act 57 of 1955) — Bare Act with Short Comments, published by Commercial Law Publishers (India) Pvt. Ltd., Edition 2026, carries the bare text of India's citizenship law together with the rules made under it, updated to include the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 as notified with effect from 11 March 2024. English.

Few Indian statutes have been as closely read in the last few years as this one. The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 was passed in December 2019 but its operative machinery waited: the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 were notified on 11 March 2024, and only then did the amended scheme become workable. For anyone advising on citizenship, registration, naturalisation or the status of migrants, the statute alone is not enough — the rules, the forms and the notifications are where the procedure actually lives.

That is what this volume assembles. The Act, the Citizenship Rules, 2009 as amended in 2024, the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003, and the notification establishing the Empowered Committee under section 6B(1) — in one bare act, with short comments, at a price that lets a student or a junior keep a copy on the desk.

Key Features

• Edition 2026, Commercial Law Publishers (India) Pvt. Ltd.
• Bare text of the Citizenship Act, 1955 (Act 57 of 1955) with short comments
• As amended by the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (47 of 2019), dt. 12-12-2019, w.e.f. 10-1-2020 vide SO 172(E)
• CAA notified w.e.f. 11-03-2024
• Along with the Citizenship Rules, 2009 (vide G.S.R. No. 124(E), dt. 25-2-2009)
• As amended by the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 vide GSR 172(E), dt. 11-3-2024
• The Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003, as amended vide GSR 586(E), dt. 21-8-2019
• Notification establishing the Empowered Committee under section 6B(1), dt. 11-3-2024
• Pocket bare act format · English

Coverage

Preliminary. Short title and commencement, and the definitions — including "illegal migrant", "person of Indian origin" and "overseas citizen of India cardholder".

Acquisition of Citizenship. The five routes recognised by the Act — citizenship by birth (section 3), by descent (section 4), by registration (section 5), by naturalisation (section 6), and by incorporation of territory (section 7) — with the conditions and qualifying periods attached to each.

Special Provisions (Sections 6A and 6B). Section 6A and the special provisions as to citizenship of persons covered by the Assam Accord; and section 6B, inserted by the 2019 Amendment, dealing with citizenship by registration or naturalisation for the specified classes, together with the Empowered Committee constituted under section 6B(1).

Overseas Citizens of India. Registration as an OCI cardholder, the rights conferred, and the grounds and procedure for cancellation of registration.

Termination and Deprivation. Renunciation of citizenship, termination on acquisition of foreign citizenship, and deprivation of citizenship by order of the Central Government.

Supplemental Provisions. Commonwealth citizenship, the power to confer rights on citizens of certain countries, delegation of powers, offences and penalties, the burden of proof, and the rule-making power.

The Schedules. The qualifications for naturalisation and the oath of allegiance.

The Citizenship Rules, 2009. The procedural rules — authorities, applications and forms for registration and naturalisation, verification and inquiry, the certificate and the oath, registers, and fees — as amended by the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024.

The Registration of Citizens and National Identity Cards Rules, 2003. Preparation of the National Register of Indian Citizens, the Local Register, the Registrar General of Citizen Registration, verification and objections, and the issue of national identity cards.

Who Should Buy This Book?

• Advocates advising on citizenship, registration, naturalisation, OCI status and deportation
• Lawyers in constitutional and writ practice
• Judicial officers and candidates for judicial service examinations
• LL.B. and LL.M. students taking constitutional law, and students of political science and public administration
• Candidates for UPSC, State PSC and other competitive examinations where the Act is prescribed
• Officials in the Home Department, FRRO, passport and immigration offices
• Journalists, researchers and policy analysts following the CAA and NRC debate
• Law college and institutional libraries

Why Choose This Book?

The practical argument is completeness. The Citizenship Act runs to a few dozen sections; almost everything that decides a real application sits in the rules, forms and notifications. A bare act that prints the 2009 Rules as amended in 2024, the 2003 Registration Rules and the section 6B(1) notification alongside the Act saves the reader from chasing gazette references.

The second is currency. This is a 2026 edition carrying the position after the CAA's notification on 11 March 2024. Older bare acts of this statute print the 2019 Amendment without the rules that gave it effect, which is of limited use.

The third is the short comments. Commercial's bare acts annotate briefly rather than commentating at length — enough to orient a reader on a contested provision without turning a pocket volume into a treatise, and at a price that makes it an easy addition to the shelf.