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Rajya Sabha Passes Immigration and Foreigners Bill Amid Opposition Walkout
The Rajya Sabha has passed the Immigration and Foreigners Bill, 2025, amidst a walkout by opposition members from the Congress and Trinamool Congress (TMC), who raised strong objections to the bill’s provisions. The legislation aims to overhaul India’s legal framework governing the entry, stay, and deportation of foreigners, granting the central government significant powers under broad discretionary categories.
Opposition Criticism and Walkout
Congress MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi led the charge against the bill, sharply criticizing it for treating all foreigners as “potential criminals” and establishing what he described as a surveillance-heavy system lacking constitutional safeguards. He accused the government of pushing a “control-freak” agenda that empowers lower-level officials with excessive authority while undermining civil liberties.
Singhvi warned that the bill wrongly assumes foreigners have no constitutional rights and sets a dangerous precedent by concentrating legal authority in the hands of immigration officers. He emphasized that even citizens are protected by checks and balances — protections the bill, he argued, denies to foreigners.
Key Provisions of the Bill
The Immigration and Foreigners Bill empowers the central government to deny entry or deport any foreigner on grounds such as national security, sovereignty, public order, foreign relations, or public health. One of the most controversial clauses makes immigration officers’ decisions final and binding, leaving little room for appeal or independent review.
Opposition members voiced fears that such sweeping powers could be used arbitrarily, with little accountability. Despite these objections, the House rejected all proposed amendments.
Passage by Voice Vote
Following the opposition walkout, the bill was passed by a voice vote. With the government enjoying a numerical edge in the House, the legislation sailed through without further resistance.
The government has argued that the bill is necessary to address emerging national security threats and manage migration more effectively. However, opposition leaders claim it represents an erosion of constitutional principles and opens the door to unchecked executive action.
The passage of this bill marks a significant shift in India’s immigration policy landscape, with implications not only for foreign nationals entering India but also for the broader debate on the balance between national security and individual rights.
