National Register of Citizens (NRC) Updation: 12,218 People Marked ‘D’ voters Who have no cases in Foreigners Tribunals

* Revelation made during NRC updating

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, July 22: With just seven days left for the publication of complete draft NRC (National Register of Citizens), Dispur is now taken up with the issue of 12,218 people marked as ‘D’ voters but who have no cases pending against them in the Foreigners Tribunals (FTs). This revelation was made during the updating of NRC.

What would their legal status be? On one hand, they have been listed as D voters in the electoral rolls but on the other hand no FT has any case against them (in total violation of set rules).

As situations stand today, there are two categories of D voters: those that have cases pending against them in the Foreigners Tribunals (as it should be), and the other group that simply does not have any such cases pending against their names. Names of all these people as well as their descendents would not figure in the NRC until FTs declare them as Indians. On the other hand, once the FTs declare them as foreigners then their names would be automatically rejected.

But the fact remains that it is the Assam Police (border) that should register a case against any such person identified as a D voter.

The cumulative number of people marked ‘D’ by the Election Commission of India (ECI) since 1997 to December 31, 2017 is 2,44,144. However, as on December 31, 2017 there were 1,13,110 such voters whose cases are pending in various FTs. As on January 2018, the electoral rolls have 1,25,328 D voters of whom 12,218 have no cases pending against their names.

The case assumes significance as questions now arise as to how could such a huge number of people presently reside in Assam without any case registered against their names in any of the Foreigners Tribunals operating across the State? There are also pointers as to the loopholes that might have been made use of by vested interests to not register any case against them.