In a major relief to members of minority communities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, who came to India till December 31, 2024 to escape religious persecution, will not need passport or other travel documents.
Issuing this order, Ministry of Home Affairs said, members of minority communities including Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, will be allowed to stay in the country.
According to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), which came into force last year, members of these persecuted minorities, who came to India on or before December 31, 2014, will be granted Indian citizenship.
The significant order, issued under the just-implemented Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, will come as a relief to a large number of people, especially Hindus from Pakistan, who crossed over to India after 2014 and were worried about their fate.
“A person belonging to a minority community in Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan — Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians — who were compelled to seek shelter in India due to religious persecution or fear of religious persecution and entered the country on or before December 31, 2024 without valid documents, including a passport or other travel documents, or with valid documents, including a passport or other travel documents, and the validity of such documents have expired” will be exempted from the rule of possessing a valid passport and visa, according to an order issued by the Home Ministry.
The move aims to uphold India’s humanitarian tradition of sheltering persecuted minorities and reflects the government’s view that these individuals should not be punished for their inability to secure formal papers in hostile environments.
This exemption ensures that those fleeing religious violence are offered safety and dignity without the bureaucratic hurdles of documentation that they could never acquire, sources said.