Union, Territory & Citizenship
Articles 1 to 11: The indestructible Union and the body of citizens.
Constitutional Overview
The opening parts of the Constitution establish the political sovereignty, territorial boundaries, and democratic membership of the Republic. India is defined as an indestructible Union of destructible States with single, equal citizenship for all.
Core Principles
- •India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States comprising States, Union Territories, and acquired territories (Article 1).
- •Parliamentary authority to admit or establish new States and reorganise internal state boundaries (Articles 2–4).
- •Determination of citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution based on domicile and birth (Article 5).
- •Rules governing persons migrating to India or Pakistan during Partition (Articles 6–7).
- •Strict adherence to single citizenship, barring foreign nationals from claiming citizenship at commencement (Article 9).
- •Plenary authority of Parliament to regulate citizenship and naturalisation by law (Article 11).
Key Constitutional Articles
Name and territory of the Union
Defines India as a single, indestructible Union of States named Bharat, comprising all the States, Union Territories, and any acquired territories.
Admission or establishment of new States
Empowers Parliament to admit into the Indian Union, or establish as new States, external territories that were not previously part of India.
Formation of new States and alteration of areas, boundaries or names of existing States
Empowers Parliament to create new states, adjust state borders, increase or decrease a state’s area, or change a state’s name by ordinary legislation.
Laws made under articles 2 and 3 to provide for the amendment of the First and the Fourth Schedules and supplemental, incidental and consequential matters
Clarifies that laws creating new states or redrawing boundaries are passed by an ordinary parliamentary majority and do not require a constitutional amendment under Article 368.
Citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution
Determined who automatically became an Indian citizen on 26 January 1950 based on having an Indian domicile combined with birth, parentage, or five years of prior residence.
Rights of citizenship of certain persons who have migrated to India from Pakistan
Granted citizenship at the Constitution’s commencement to displaced refugees who migrated from Pakistan to India following the 1947 Partition, subject to origin and residence criteria.
Rights of citizenship of certain migrants to Pakistan
Provided that persons who migrated from India to Pakistan after 1 March 1947 lost their Indian citizenship, unless they returned under a lawful permit for permanent resettlement.
Rights of citizenship of certain persons of Indian origin residing outside India
Allowed persons of Indian origin living abroad on 26 January 1950 to claim Indian citizenship by registering with an Indian diplomatic or consular mission.
Persons voluntarily acquiring citizenship of a foreign State not to be citizens
Article 9 bars citizenship under Articles 5, 6 or 8 at the Constitution’s commencement after voluntary acquisition of foreign citizenship; later termination is governed by section 9 of the Citizenship Act, 1955.
Continuance of the rights of citizenship
Guarantees that anyone recognized as a citizen under Articles 5–8 continues to remain a citizen, subject only to laws enacted by Parliament.
Parliament to regulate the right of citizenship by law
Grants Parliament complete constitutional authority to make laws governing who can acquire, lose, or hold Indian citizenship after 26 January 1950.