President urges parliament to address doubts over scientist’s citizenship

Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs has urged parliament to address any doubts about the fast-track award of citizenship to Indian-born scientist Divya Kannan Vishwanath, LSM reported.

In a letter sent on October 21 to Saeima Speaker Daiga Mieriņa, Rinkēvičs said lawmakers should consider whether bills of this kind should be passed urgently unless there is a justified, pressing reason. He cannot return the decision for reconsideration a second time.

The Saeima granted Vishwanath Latvian citizenship on October 15 through an individual law, citing her contribution to science, pharmaceuticals, business and innovation. The urgent procedure was approved by more than two-thirds of deputies.

Social media posts later alleged that Vishwanath may have provided false information about herself. The Saeima’s Citizenship, Migration and Social Cohesion Committee is to review a deputy’s request to check the facts surrounding the decision.

Rinkēvičs noted that granting citizenship through an individual law is fundamentally different from the procedure in Article 13 of the Citizenship Law, which allows citizenship to be granted for special merit to Latvia. He said such legislation must follow the principles of good lawmaking and that parliament should assess each law’s impact on society.