Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday presented an Indian citizenship certificate to Joseph Francis Pereira, a 78-year-old Pakistani Christian, making him the first recipient from the state under the amended Citizenship Act.

Pereira, originally from Goa, had moved to Pakistan for studies before India’s independence and subsequently obtained Pakistani citizenship. After working in Karachi for several years, he returned to India in 2013. Despite being married to a Goan woman, he faced difficulties in obtaining Indian citizenship until the Modi government amended the Citizenship Act in 2019.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, passed in December 2019, grants Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan who entered India before December 31, 2014. This includes Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians.

Pereira, born in 1946, is now residing in Cansualim, South Goa, with his family. The certificate states that he has been registered as a Citizen of India under Section 6B of the Citizenship Act, 1955, fulfilling the conditions under Section 5 (1)(c) with effect from the date of his entry into India.

CM Sawant highlighted that while Pereira is the first Goan to receive this certificate, many individuals across India have benefited from the amended Citizenship Act. He assured that the Goa Home Department is actively identifying eligible individuals and encouraged anyone who meets the criteria to contact the government for assistance.