Anupama Roy,

Citizenship Regimes, Law, and Belonging: The CAA and the NRC,

Oxford University Press, 2022, 278 pp

Fathimath Sheema Zahir

 

The book under review examines how India's citizenship laws, specifically the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 (CAA hereinafter), and the National Register of Citizens (NRC hereinafter), influence notions of belonging and exclusion in India. It examines the legal, political, and social implications of these laws, which have tied citizenship to religious and ethnic identities, often marginalising specific communities. Roy argues that these laws prioritise ancestry and bloodlines over birth. As a result, they have redefined the concept of citizenship in India, creating divisions based on religion and ethnicity. The book explores the intricate relationship between law, identity, and citizenship in contemporary India. Roy conceptualises India’s citizenship laws through four key concepts - Hyphenated Citizenship, Bounded Citizenship, Liminal Citizenship, and Recalling Citizenship. These offer a nuanced understanding of the evolving and contested nature of citizenship in the country.