Why CAA implementation does not cover tribal areas in Northeast

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, which came into effect on Monday, will not be implemented in most tribal areas in Northeastern states, including those granted special status under the 6th Schedule of the Constitution.

According to the law, it is not going to be implemented in all Northeastern states where Inner Line Permit (ILP) is required for a visit by people of other parts of the country.

The ILP is in force in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur.

The tribal areas, where autonomous councils were created under the 6th Schedule of the Constitution, were also exempted from the purview of the CAA, officials said quoting from the rues of the law that were notified on Monday.

Such autonomous councils are in existence in Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura.

These include Karbi Anglong, Dila Hasao and Bodoland Territorial Council areas in Assam, Garo Hills in Meghalaya and tribal areas in Tripura.

The CAA seeks to grant citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis who came to India on or before December 31, 2014 from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan.