SC Issues Notice On Plea Seeking To Stop Harassment Of Minorities In Assam

New Delhi: The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday sought responses from the Centre and Assam government on a plea seeking to stop the persecution of people belonging to religious and linguistic minority communities in the state in the name of detection and deportation of alleged foreigners.

In this regard, a bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and Surya Kant issued a notice and directed for the listing of the matter after the disposal of the 2015 matter pending before the Constitution bench which pertains to the validity of provisions of the Citizenship Act, providing the basis for Assam-NRC.

"In view of the reference made, list after the disposal of reference. Writ Petition be listed after disposal of the reference," the bench added.

Appearing for Asom Sankhyalaghu Sangram Parishad, who filed the petition, senior advocate Sanjay Hegde said that there is a saying that people cross borders, but at times even borders have crossed people.

He further said that the state coordinator of Assam NRC has filed an application seeking re-verification of the National Register of Citizenship (NRC).

''The petition has also sought for prohibiting the authority to delete or exclude any person from the final list of the NRC of Assam dated August 31, 2019,'' he added.

He also apprised that the petitioners have also sought to strictly prohibit the state from doubting one's citizenship without discharging the initial burden of collecting the relevant data.

In the petition, the petitioner has also prayed for directing the Registrar General of India to finalize the draft list of NRC published on August 31, 2019, issue NRC identity cards to all persons included in the final list, and provide facilities to prefer an appeal to the left out persons from the NRC.

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