One rule for army, another for Sonia? - Part III
Surya Prakash, New Delhi
Newstime
May 12, 1999
Title: One rule for army, another for Sonia? - Part III
Author: Surya Prakash, New Delhi
Publication: Newstime
Date: May 12, 1999
As has been stated earlier in this series, Sonia Gandhi had held
shares in two Indians companies in violation of the Foreign Exchange
Regulation Act, 1974 and had even entered the voters' list, while
still being a citizen of Italy during the years 1980-83. Yet, when
she applied for Indian citizenship in April, 1983, it was granted to
her in just three weeks. This is probably because her mother-in-law
Indira Gandhi was the Prime Minister at that time. The fact that she
had infringed Indian laws prior to her application was not held
against her.
However, ironically, she was required to state under oath that she
would bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution "and
faithfully observe the laws of India". There is also no reliable
mechanism within the government to check whether naturalised citizens
like Sonia Gandhi comply with the conditions that are imposed on them
under Section 10 of the Citizenship Act.
While this is how government treats foreign nationals, who secure
Indian citizenship, it appears to be exceptionally fussy and even
suspicious about natural-born Indian who work in certain sectors of
government.
First of all, no one ever gets a government job without establishing
his or her citizenship credentials. Indians do not carry citizenship
certificates, but this qualification is usually met when the
applicant's place of birth is within the territory of India. The law
recognises every person born on Indian soil as a citizen of Indian.
But there are some sectors in which the government goes beyond this
fundamental check and virtually insists that the employee's spouse
also be a citizen of India by birth. Examples which easily come to
mind are the armed forces and the Indian foreign service (IFS).
Section 33 of the Army Order says that army personnel desirous of
marrying foreign nationals, except the nationals of Bhutan, are
required to obtain prior government sanction for such marriages. This
order, however, exempts Gorkhas, whether of Nepalese origin or of
Indian domicile, who desire to marry Nepalese or Indian subjects.
An officer intending to marry a foreign national has to fill out an
elaborate application and send it to army headquarters four months
prior to the date of marriage. Alongside this application, the office
has to also send an application for release from the army "for
personal reasons", a written application from the officer's
spouse-to-be that he or she will renounce his or her original
nationality and accept Indian citizenship as soon as the Indian
Citizenship Act permits him or her to do so.
The army also insists on an undertaking from the officer that his/her
application for release from the service may be automatically
processed if the foreign spouse "refuses to acquire Indian
citizenship or wilfully delays acquisition of Indian citizenship".
Further, the officer's application must be accompanied with an
application by the spouse-to-be for Indian citizenship and complete
details of the latter's background, including occupation in the last
five years, degrees and diplomas obtained and proficiency in
languages.
So, what happens after all this rigmarole? Senior officers in the
armed forces do not recall any instance of a colleague being permitted
by the government to marry a foreign national. In fact, the army is
so fastidious that recently a lady officer in the Army Medical Corps,
who was betrothed to an Indian green cardholder in the United States,
had to quit the service before marriage because her fiance declined to
give an undertaking that he would retain his Indian citizenship.
To order also says that the services of army personnel, who marry
foreign nationals without permission will be terminated. Air force
and navy personnel have to go through a similar exercise, but the end
result is usually the same - no permission.
The situation in the Indian foreign service is slightly better, but
IFS officials too have to go through these hassles, if they wish to
marry a foreign national. Till a decade ago, no member of the IFS was
permitted to marry a foreign national. The government usually asked
such officials to put in their papers. IFS officers says that in
recent years the government has been much more liberal in dealing with
such issues, but the rules continue to be rigid. Clause 8(1) of the
Indian Foreign Service (conduct and discipline) Rules, 1986 says no
member ofthe service shall marry any person other than an Indian
citizen "without the prior permission in writing of the government".
Officers who intend to marry foreign nationals have make a written
application to the foreign secretary and give the government one year
to reply. Clause 8(3) says, "If a member of the service contracts
marriage with a person other than an Indian citizen without obtaining
prior written permission, he shall be liable to be removed from the
service."
The rules further state that the government reserves the right to
refuse permission if it feels to marriage will hinder proper
performance of the duties of the member of the service. In case
permission is accorded, "the government may stipulate such conditions
as it may deem appropriate".
Therefore, what emerges from all this is that you cannot enter the
Indian armed forces unless you establish your Indian citizenship and
you will be asked to put in your papers if you acquire a foreign
spouse, Italian-born Sonia Gandhi can be Prime Minister, order around
the armed forces, let herself in on all state secrets and even
determine India's strategic defence doctrine. And while she zealously
pursues this ambition, Congress spokespersons say that it is graceless
and uncivil to ask her the most rudimentally questions about her
Indian citizenship.
It is this inequity between Indian-Indians and Italian-Indians that
the former find abhorrent.
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