Overview
- Union home minister Amit Shah issued a Malayalam reply dated November 14 to CPI(M) MP John Brittas regarding concerns over the August 12 notification on cancelling Overseas Citizen of India registration on the basis of being chargesheeted.
- The letter included a complete Malayalam version alongside Hindi and is reported as the first instance of a home minister replying in Malayalam.
- Brittas argued that using a chargesheet as a ground for cancellation violates due process and the presumption of innocence and exceeds the mandate of the Citizenship Act, 1955.
- Shah’s communication was a brief acknowledgment rather than a substantive resolution of the legal issues Brittas raised.
- The gesture carries political significance in Kerala ahead of the 2026 assembly polls, as the BJP seeks to build on its first Lok Sabha seat in the state and Brittas continues to push for greater linguistic parity in parliamentary communications.