Any guarantee of Bangladeshi-free NRC?

There are many among the indigenous people of the State whose mes do not find mention in the first NRC draft. Out of 3.29 crore applicants who had sought their mes to be entered in the updated NRC, 1.9 crore mes find mention in the first draft. What is the guarantee that this draft is absolutely free from the mes of any illegal Bangladeshis?

Staff Reporter

Guwahati, April3: There was a general perception in Assam that after the update of the NRC currently underway in the State under the monitoring of the Supreme Court, the State would be free from illegal Bangladeshis to a large extent, but it has come as a dampener that some illegal Bangladeshis could make their furtive way to the NRC as well, prompting the Gauhati High Court to call the development “a matter of serious concern”.

One Md Ali Ahmed from Morigaon district was declared a foreigner by a Foreigners Tribul on November 22, 2011, which he challenged in the high court via a writ petition (No. WP(C) 2768/2017). But the high court on May 17, 2017 affirmed the tribul’s order. However, when the first draft of the updated NRC was published on December 31 last year, Ali’s me surprisingly found mention in the NRC list from Lahorighat in Morigaon district.

When the issue came to the notice of Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and Ajit Borthakur of the Gauhati High Court, they were “astonished” and wondered as to how it was possible. In its order of March 28 last, the court called it “a matter of serious concern”, saying its order should be furnished to A Verma, the counsel for the State NRC Coorditor, “so that necessary steps can be taken by the NRC authorities”.

According to the order, S th, the counsel for the petitioner, submitted that the me of the review petitioner Md Ali Ahmed had been included in the part draft of the NRC published on December 31 last year and he would like to bring this fact on record by filing an affidavit.

The court will hear the review petition on April 11.

Given the instance of Ali Ahmed who could enter his me in the first draft of the updated NRC despite he being declared a foreigner by a foreigners tribul whose order was affirmed by the high court too, the common impression among the indigenous people of the State is that either he could forge documents so as to make them exactly origil or he might have entered into some tacit understanding with some NRC update officials. On the other hand, there are many among the indigenous people of the State whose mes do not find mention in the first NRC draft. Out of 3.29 crore applicants who had sought their mes to be entered in the updated NRC, 1.9 crore mes find mention in the first draft. What is the guarantee that this draft is absolutely free from the mes of any illegal Bangladeshis? The gravity of the matter is yet another body blow to the aspirations of the sons of the soil of Assam to live in a land free from the vice-like grip of aliens from across the border who, as reported time and again, have now even shown the temerity to encroach upon the prized xatra lands too.