Tue Jan 07 00:02:50 IST 2025: ## Bihar Woman Granted Citizenship After 40-Year Wait Under CAA
**Ara, Bihar:** Sumitra Prasad, alias Rani Saha, a resident of Ara, Bihar, has been granted Indian citizenship after living in the country for over four decades. This marks the first such instance in Bihar under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
Saha, who runs a grocery shop, arrived in India from Bangladesh in 1985 after leaving her home at the age of five in 1970. For 40 years, she lived in India on a visa, facing continuous challenges and bureaucratic hurdles in renewing her documentation. This included frequent visits to police stations and embassies, along with threats of deportation and imprisonment for failing to maintain her visa status.
The process of obtaining citizenship was initiated by Saha’s youngest daughter, Aishwarya Prasad, in October 2024, after learning about the CAA provisions. The application was approved under the State Level Empowered Committee, finally granting Saha the Indian citizenship she had sought for so long.
Saha expressed immense gratitude to Prime Minister Modi and the Indian government for granting her citizenship, highlighting the difficulties she faced in accessing basic government services like an Aadhaar card and ration card due to her visa status. Her daughter, Aishwarya, echoed the family’s relief, emphasizing the significant impact this will have on their lives, particularly regarding access to essential government benefits. The family now looks forward to a future free from the constant fear of deportation and the limitations imposed by her previous visa status.
First Piper 