‘Yeh desh hai, dharamshala nahin’: Amit Shah pilots new immigration bill

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday piloted the Immigration and Foreigners Bill, 2025, in the Lok Sabha saying it had been brought with the policy of 'national security first' and would ensure warding off illegal immigrants while easing lawful immigration.

The Bill will check the entry of illegal immigrants at the height of a political debate around infiltration from Bangladesh and the presence of Rohingyas in India.

"Yeh desh hai, dharamshala nahin...People cannot come here on any pretext and stay forever. Those who come and enrich our country are welcome but those coming to undermine our security are not," Shah said replying to a debate on the Bill in the Lok Sabha, which later passed it with a voice vote.

Demands to send it to a parliamentary committee were turned down with Shah saying it had been brought after three years of comprehensive consultations and did not need any more discussion.

The Bill replaces the four colonial-era laws that so far governed the entry of foreigners into India: The Foreigners Act, 1946; the Passport Act, 1920; the Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939; and the Immigration Carriers' Liability Act, 2000.

"Immigration, a segment so critical to our national security, development and trade, was so far being governed by laws drafted in British times to advance their interests. We are changing that now and the Bill has been brought to advance indigenous interests," Shah said.

He listed broad objectives of the Bill as enhancement of national security, control of immigration procedures, and stricter penalties for violations for those entering India without valid documents.

The Bill requires anyone entering India to have a passport and visa or face a five-year jail and up to Rs 5 lakh in fine. Presentation of forged documents can lead to a jail term ranging from two to seven years and up to Rs 10 lakh in fine.

The Bill gives the authority to officials to deny permission to any foreigner if they, following the due process, are found to be a threat to national security.

All institutions -- educational, health, nursing and others -- would need to make online intimation of presence of foreigners on their campuses.

Transport carriers carrying foreigners without valid documents will also be held liable and can be charged Rs 5 lakh in fine. If India denies entry to a foreigner, the carrier would need to remove him.

The Bill further gives immigration officers powers to arrest individuals without warrants. Shah assured the Lok Sabha that no official would be allowed to take the law in his hands and all provisions are bound by the law.

The minister said the blacklisting of people would be granted a legal backing and the Centre would also notify the points of entry to India under the new law. "People cannot enter from just anywhere," he said, adding, "our borders are sensitive and cannot be open to all as they have been in the past".