Which Articles of Indian Constitution are related to citizenship?

The correct answer is B, Part II. Citizenship is dealt with in Part II of the Constitution, which contains Articles 5 to 11. These provisions settle who became a citizen of India at the commencement of the Constitution on 26 January 1950 and, through Article 11, leave all later law on citizenship to Parliament. Option A is wrong because Part I, containing Articles 1 to 4, deals with the Union and its territory, the formation of new states and the alteration of boundaries. Option C is wrong because Part VII originally contained Article 238 on the states in Part B of the First Schedule and was repealed by the Seventh Amendment in 1956. Option D is wrong because Part IX deals with the Panchayats, inserted by the Seventy-third Amendment of 1992, while Part IXA covers the municipalities. Remember the simple order: Part I territory, Part II citizenship, Part III fundamental rights.

The correct answer is C, 1955. The Constitution settles only who was a citizen on 26 January 1950, and Article 11 leaves the rest to Parliament, which enacted the Citizenship Act in 1955. The Act lays down five modes of acquiring citizenship and three of losing it, and it has been amended in 1986, 1992, 2003, 2005, 2015 and 2019. Option A is wrong because 1950 is the year the Constitution came into force, not the year of the Act. Option B is wrong because 1952 is the year of the first general election and of the Representation of the People Act machinery being used for it, not of the citizenship law. Option D is wrong because 1962 has no connection with citizenship law; it is remembered for the India-China war. Learn the pair together: Part II of the Constitution plus the Citizenship Act, 1955.

The correct answer is D, Article 11. Article 11 states that nothing in the preceding provisions takes away the power of Parliament to make any provision with respect to the acquisition and termination of citizenship and all other matters relating to citizenship. It is on the strength of this Article that the Citizenship Act, 1955 was enacted and has been amended since. Option A is wrong because Article 5 only decides who was a citizen at the commencement of the Constitution, using the tests of domicile, birth in India, a parent born in India or five years of ordinary residence. Option B is wrong because Article 9 provides that a person who voluntarily acquires the citizenship of a foreign state is not a citizen of India. Option C is wrong because Article 10 merely continues the rights of citizenship subject to any law Parliament makes, and is therefore dependent on Article 11.

The correct answer is D, by marriage. The Act lists exactly five modes of acquiring citizenship: by birth, by descent, by registration, by naturalisation and by incorporation of territory. Marriage to an Indian citizen does not by itself confer citizenship; the foreign spouse of a citizen must apply under the registration route after being ordinarily resident in India for seven years, which is why marriage is never counted as a separate mode. Option A is wrong as an answer because birth is the first mode, governed by three different date windows beginning on 26 January 1950. Option B is wrong because descent covers a person born outside India to an Indian parent, subject to registration at an Indian consulate. Option C is wrong because registration is the route used by persons of Indian origin resident in India, by spouses of citizens and by minor children of citizens.

The correct answer is B, ceases to be a citizen of India. Article 9 lays down that a person who has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of any foreign state is not a citizen of India, and Section 9 of the Citizenship Act gives the same rule the name termination of citizenship. This is the constitutional basis of India's refusal of dual citizenship. Option A is wrong precisely because dual citizenship is not permitted; a person must choose. Option C is wrong because the Overseas Citizen of India card is not automatic: a person of Indian origin must apply for it, and in any case the card is a long-term visa and not citizenship, giving no right to vote or to hold a constitutional office. Option D is wrong because the loss under Article 9 operates by force of the Constitution itself and does not wait upon any law of Parliament.