THE MEANING OF ‘LIFE’ UNDER THE INDIAN
CONSTITUTION AND THE OBLIGATION NOT TO
RENDER PERSONS STATELESS: WITH REFERENCE TO
THE NRC IN ASSAM
ANDREA MARILYN PRAGASHINI IMMANUEL *
A person who has lost or who has been deprived of their nationality due to state action loses
membership in the polity and is forced to live without human dignity. The right to nationality or
the right to have rights obligates states to not render persons stateless and protects persons from
a life without dignity. On the other hand, ‘life’ under art 21 of the Constitution of India is
understood as dignified life and has been interpreted by the Indian courts as the right to rights. In
this article, I examine how ‘life’ or the right to rights under art 21 of the Indian Constitution should
include the right to have rights or the international obligation on the state not to render persons
stateless. I apply these conclusions to examine India’s controversial exercise of updating the
National Register of Citizens.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I
II
III
IV
V
VI
*
Introduction........................................................................................................... 187
The Meaning of the Right to Have Rights and the Obligation to Not Render
Persons Stateless under International Law ........................................................... 188
A The Right to Nationality as the Right to Have Rights .............................. 190
B The Meaning of the Obligation Not to Render Persons Stateless under
International Law...................................................................................... 192
The Right to Life and the Obligation Not to Render Persons Stateless Under
International Law .................................................................................................. 193
The Meaning of ‘Life’ Under Art 21 of the Constitution and the International
Obligation Not to Render Persons Stateless ......................................................... 194
A ‘Life’ in a Situation of Statelessness in India ........................................... 194
B ‘Life’ as Encompassing the Obligation Not to Render Persons Stateless 197
1
Nationality as a Necessity for Enjoyment of a Dignified ‘Life’ .. 199
2
Nationality as an Aspect of Dignified ‘Life’ ................................ 200
3
Procedure Established by Law and Exceptions to the
Obligation Not to Render Persons Stateless ................................. 201
‘Life’, the Obligation Not to Render Persons Stateless and the NRC ................... 202
A Does the NRC Updating Exercise in Assam Lead to a Threat or
Risk of Statelessness? ............................................................................... 203
B Does the NRC Updating Exercise Violate the Right to ‘Life’ under
art 21? ....................................................................................................... 205
Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 207
Assistant Professor of Legal Practice, Jindal Global Law School, OP Jindal Global University,
India, LLM in Public International Law, Utrecht University (2014–15), BA, BL (Honours),
School of Excellence in Law (2009–14). I am deeply grateful to the participants of the
‘Citizenship and Statelessness in India’ project led by the Bonavero Institute of Human
Rights, Melbourne Law School and Jindal Global Law School for their comments on a draft
of this article. I am also grateful to the three anonymous reviewers, to Dr Mohsin Alam Bhat
and to Mr Aashish Yadav for their helpful reviews and comments. Mr Dheemanth R
Vangimalla, former Graduate Diploma in Law student, BPP University, United Kingdom
provided excellent research assistance on this project and I am thankful for his support.