According to the United Nations Refugee Agency UNHCR with respect to Asylum Seekers in Portugal: A Subsidiary Protection status can be granted to a person who does not qualify for the refugee status, but who cannot return to their country of origin (or habitual residence, if this person does not have a nationality) because of situations of massive violation of human rights, conflict, death penalty, execution, torture or inhuman and/or degrading treatment.
The pre-requisite towards the application of such type of asylum is that the asylum seeker can only apply for international protection in Portugal when they are physically present on the Portuguese territory.
Asylum under the Subsidiary Protection status (international protection) cannot be applied for in Portugal from abroad.
But then what is the fate of the thousands of persons of Goan origin who are entitled to obtain Portuguese Nationality but find it difficult to conform to the oppressive governmental regime of the Indian laws currently prevalent in the State?
According to the Citizenship Act, 1955, in the Chapter entitled TERMINATION OF CITIZENSHIP:
8. Renunciation of citizenship.―
(1) If any citizen of India of full age and capacity, makes in the prescribed manner a declaration renouncing his Indian Citizenship, the declaration shall be registered by the prescribed authority; and, upon such registration, that person shall cease to be a citizen of India:
Provided that if any such declaration is made during any war in which India may be engaged, registration thereof shall be withheld until the Central Government otherwise directs.
(2) Where a person ceases to be a citizen of India under sub-section (1), every minor child of that person shall thereupon cease to be a citizen of India:
Provided that any such child may, within one year after attaining full age, make a declaration in the prescribed form and manner that he wishes to resume Indian citizenship and shall thereupon again become a citizen of India.
The voluntary acquisition of the citizenship of another country would necessitate a presumption that persons holding Foreign (in this case: Portuguese) Nationality by virtue of the acquisition of the foreign citizenship through the inquiry envisaged in Section 9 of the Indian Citizenship Act, 1955:
9. Termination of citizenship.―
(1) Any citizen of India who by naturalisation, registration otherwise voluntarily acquires, or has at any time between the 26th January, 1950 and the commencement of this Act, voluntarily acquired, the citizenship of another country shall, upon such acquisition or, as the case may be, such commencement, cease to be a citizen of India:
Provided that nothing in this sub-section shall apply to a citizen of India who, during any war in which India may be engaged, voluntarily acquires the citizenship of another country, until the Central Government otherwise directs.
(2) If any question arises as to whether, when or how any citizen of India has acquired the citizenship of another country, it shall be determined by such authority, in such manner, and having regard to such rules of evidence, as may be prescribed in this behalf.
Overseas Citizenship of India
The Constitution of India does not permit dual citizenship or dual nationality except for minors where the second nationality was involuntarily acquired.
Incidentally, in the year 2005, the Union Government of India amended the Indian Citizenship Act, 1955 in order to introduce a form of overseas citizenship known as the Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI).
Such overseas citizens may not vote, run for office, join the army, or take up government posts and are not entitled to acquire agricultural land within the sovereign territory of India.
Contrastingly, according to the Foreigners Order, 1948 which is an Order issued by the Ministry Of Home Affairs under The Foreigners Act, 1946 vide a Notification dated: 10th February 1948, wherein at Rule 5 it has been specified:
5. Power to grant permission to depart from India: –
(1) No foreigner shall leave India:
(a) otherwise than at such port or other recognised place of departure on the borders of India as a Registration Officer having jurisdiction at that port or place may appoint in this behalf either for foreigners generally or for any specified class or description of foreigners; or
(b) without the leave of the civil authority having jurisdiction at such port or place.
(2) Leave shall be refused if the civil authority is satisfied that:
(a) the foreigner has failed to comply with the formalities of departure prescribed under the Registration of Foreigners Rules, 1939;
(b) the foreigner's presence is required in India to answer a criminal charge;
(c) the foreigner's departure will prejudice the relations of the Central Government with a foreign power;
(d) the departure of the foreigner has been prohibited under an order issued by competent authority.
Indian Passports Act, 1967
As per the Passports Act 1967, it is mandatory for all Indian passport holders to surrender their passports to the nearest Indian Mission/Post immediately after the acquisition of foreign nationality.
Surrender Certificate: A Surrender Certificate is issued to applicants willing to surrender their passports at Passport Offices mainly for renunciation of Indian citizenship and acquiring foreign nationality.
Three Months: There is a grace period of three months after the acquisition of foreign nationality (to be counted from the date of the certificate of citizenship/registration/Naturalisation and not from the date of issue of foreign passport) for using an Indian passport for travel.
Portuguese Nationality
According to the Consulate General of Portugal in Goa, for those born before 1961,
Eligibility: Those born in the territories of the erstwhile “Estado da Índia”, who declare their wish to maintain their Portuguese nationality.
The remaining descendants up to the 3rd generation of the Portuguese referred to above, and who have not declared their wish not to be Portuguese.
