Allahabad HC directs Centre to decide on Rahul Gandhi's dual citizenship row by April 21
Lucknow/IBNS: The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has given the Home Ministry four weeks, until April 21, to decide on Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's dual citizenship, media reports said.
Gandhi's citizenship row has been going on for several years now and the present case is based on a petition filed by a private individual from Karnataka.
The petitioner, a lawyer named Vignesh Shishir, who is also believed to be a BJP worker, has sought an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the grounds that he has new information about Rahul Gandhi's citizenship status.
He has claimed to possess confidential emails from the British government to support his claim.
"We have direct communication from the UK government that Mr Gandhi is in their citizenship records," he said.
"We have presented all documents. Under Indian laws dual citizenship is not allowed. Once someone takes the citizenship of another nation, Indian citizenship gets cancelled," he told NDTV earlier.
In a previous hearing in this matter that took place in November last year, a bench comprising Justice Rajan Roy and Justice Om Prakash Shukla had directed Deputy Solicitor General SB Pandey, appearing on behalf of the home ministry, to take directions about action taken regarding the plea.
The Home Ministry was then given three weeks to respond.
Meanwhile, last month the Delhi High Court, which is hearing an identical plea filed by ex-BJP MP Subramanian Swamy in 2019, directed the Centre to seek instructions.
Swamy, who first raised this allegation in 2015, told a bench of Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice TR Gedela that he had written about Gandhi's citizenship status, but no action was taken.
The Delhi High Court earlier observed that there are dual proceedings in this case - i.e., the petition in Allahabad and the national capital - but questioned the Centre on its apparent inaction.
The Congress has always refuted allegations of Gandhi having any other citizenship other than Indian.
His sister, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, declared, "Everyone knows Rahul Gandhi is Indian and was born and raised here..."
Rahul Gandhi himself called the allegation "an endeavour to malign my name".
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