רישום - ילד קטין של אזרח הודי

Under §5(1)(d) two elements are required: (1) the applicant is a minor (under eighteen, §2(1)(e)); and (2) the minor is the child of persons who are citizens of India. The §5(1) chapeau applies (not an illegal migrant; not already a citizen). Because the registrant is a minor, the §5(2) oath of allegiance — which applies to a 'person being of full age' — is not administered to the child; the application is made on the minor's behalf. The §5(3) prior-loss bar applies. Separately, §5(4) permits the Central Government to register 'any minor' where satisfied of special circumstances justifying it — a broader residual power that is not confined to the children of citizens and can reach a minor who does not fit clause (d). Both the clause (d) registration and the §5(4) power are discretionary: §14(1) provides that an application under §5 may be granted or refused in the Central Government's discretion without assigning reasons, subject to §15 revision.

An application for a minor child's registration under §5(1)(d) is made to the Central Government on the child's behalf, establishing the child's minority (§2(1)(e)) and the parents' Indian citizenship. If satisfied, the Central Government may register the child; the grant is discretionary under §14 and final subject to §15 revision. No oath is administered to the minor (the §5(2) oath is confined to a 'person being of full age'). Under §5(5), the minor becomes a citizen by registration from the date of registration. Where the child does not fit clause (d), the Central Government may still register the minor under §5(4) on recording that special circumstances justify it. The §5(3) prior-loss bar applies. Government fees and processing timelines are operational figures not asserted here.

Section 5(1)(d) empowers the Central Government, on an application made in that behalf, to register as a citizen of India the minor children of persons who are citizens of India. It is the registration category for the minor children of Indian citizens and forms part of the §5(1) text substituted by Act 6 of 2004 (w.e.f. 3 December 2004), though a minor-children registration category has existed since the principal Act. A 'minor' is defined by §2(1)(e) as a person who has not attained the age of eighteen years. Section 5(1)(d) imposes no residence-duration requirement; eligibility turns on the parents' citizenship and the child's minority. It is supplemented by §5(4), which confers a separate, residual power: the Central Government may, if satisfied that there are special circumstances justifying such registration, cause any minor to be registered as a citizen of India — a discretionary power not limited to the children of citizens. The §5(1) chapeau conditions apply to a §5(1)(d) registration: the child must not be an illegal migrant (§2(1)(b)) and must not already be a citizen.