Constitutional Rights: Citizenship Assurance And The Rights Beyond
- IJLLR Journal
- Jan 25
- 2 min read
Rabiya Shaikh, University of Mumbai Law Academy
Citizenship embodies a legal status involving fundamental rights and responsibilities within a sovereign nation. This essay will specifically examine citizenship assurance and the associated rights and challenges. Areas explored include constitutional rights, the evolution and democratization of citizenship, current challenges, digital citizenship and data privacy, birthright privilege and statelessness, non-refoulement, deportation, the reach of welfare schemes, tension between sovereignty and due process in expulsion, the phenomenon of ethnic cleansing within and beyond borders, the unaccountability of government, and the importance of nationality and citizenship, a vital topic of discussion in governance and society.
Evolution of Citizenship with Constitutional rights: According to T.H. Marshall, citizenship is full and equal membership in a political community. The earliest forms of citizenship were limited and exclusionary in nature, as only those who had property were given citizenship rights in ancient Greek city-states, while including the right to participate in the political life of the polis, voting in the assembly and holding public office, as well as the right to own land and participate in the military to protect the city-states. The citizens enjoyed both civil and political rights. However, Women and slaves were deprived of these rights at large. Citizens used to directly or indirectly participate in all the functions of the civil and political life of the state. Whereas the slaves and women enjoyed none of such rights and suffered from all kinds of political and economic disabilities, it was with the advent of modern-liberal states that the demand for equality gained momentum and later the citizenship rights were extended to them. Thus, in ancient Greece, the term "citizen" was used in its narrow sense. A very similar concept was followed in Rome; the people who belonged to the rich class, called Patricians, were privileged to enjoy full-fledged citizenship rights, while common free men(plebeians) initially did not enjoy all political privileges, though they were still considered a citizen. Women and slaves were excluded from political citizenship; women had limited civil rights, while slaves were considered non-citizens. However, in Ancient Rome the citizens were conferred broader social and political roles compared to Greece. In ancient times the expectations of civic involvement were strong, with the belief that a citizen who did not participate in politics was considered useless to the community.
