A section heaves a sigh of relief

SC ruling on panchayat certificates

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, Dec 5: No jitters! A section of people in Assam heaved a sigh of relief on Tuesday when the Supreme Court of India set aside the verdict of the Gauhati High Court and ruled that panchayat certificates could be treated as supporting NRC documents after proper verification, in the case of inclusion mes of married women in the citizenship document.

A few months back the Gauhati High Court had given a verdict terming certificates from panchayat secretaries as private documents and as such they could not be treated as supporting NRC documents. A section of people in the State did get the jitters following the HC ruling in the run-up to NRC update in the State. However, the verdict delivered by the apex court on the vexed issue on Tuesday made them heaved a sigh of relief.

Meanwhile, both the Congress and the AIUDF welcomed the judgment delivered by the Supreme Court on panchayat certificates. Talking to newsmen in the city on Tuesday, AIUDF president Badruddin Ajmal said: “We’ve all along been demanding an error-free NRC. We welcome the verdict delivered by the apex court. The verdict will help married women getting justice in the inclusion of their mes in NRC. We respect the verdict delivered by the apex court.” 

Speaking in the same vein, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Ripun Bora said: “We welcomed the verdict delivered by the Supreme Court. We’re expecting an error-free NRC under the stewardship of the apex court.”