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Post-NRC detection of foreigners
Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: Besides extending the terms of the 64 additional FTs (foreigners tribunals) by two years each, the MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) has approved 400 more FTs for Assam.
With these 400 FTs, the total number of FTs in Assam is going to be 500. At present, the State has 36 permanent FTs and 64 additional ones. The terms of the 64 additional FTs were supposed to expire on May 23 this year. However, with the extension of their terms by the MHA, they have got a fresh lease of life.
The 64 additional FTs were set up in the State following a directive from the Gauhati High Court. The existing 100 FTs in the State have around two lakh cases pending with them.
According to sources, the move to set up more FTs in Assam is in sync with the post-NRC situation when the list of people of suspected nationalities is anticipated to be quite long. The nationalities of such suspected people will have to be ascertained by FTs.
With such a situation in view, Dispur sent a proposal to the MHA for the setting up of 1,000 more FTs in Assam to dispose the large number of cases of suspected foreigners in post-NRC. Both the State Government and the MHA have already let the Supreme Court of India know the need of 1,000 more FTs in the State.
According to sources, now Dispur is contemplating on setting up 200 of the 400 approved FTs by August/September this year, and the remaining 200 by the year-end or early 2020. The expenditure of the FTs is to be borne by the MHA.
Talking to The Sentinel, a source in the State Home and Political Department said: “We moved the MHA seeking the setting up of 1,000 more FTs in phases in Assam to face the post-NRC situation. The MHA has approved 400 of them in phase I. We’ve also got the validity of terms of the 64 additional FTs extended by the Union ministry.”
The final NRC is set to be published by July 31, 2019.