Scrupulously check original documents: NRC authority

Fake refugee certificates

Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, June 25: With a few NRC applicants being found to have adopted unethical practice like manipulation of refugee certificates in their Xeroxed copies, the NRC authority has asked officials engaged is NRC update work to be extra vigilant to foil any such move.

This practice has come to light during the scrutiny of NRC documents. A number of people from erstwhile East Pakistan did enter Assam because of turmoil in the neighbouring country. Those East Pakistanis were given refugee status in Assam with the issuance of refugee registration certificates against them. With the issuance of refugee registration certificates, those refugees being enrolled in the NRC being updated now is quite simple. However, this simple way of getting into the NRC being updated has prompted a section of others to fake themselves as refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan through the manipulation of refugee registration certificates in their Xeroxed copies. This move has created new a problem since there are two types of refugee registration certificates – genuine certificates and their fakeries or evil twins. To foil such a dirty trick being adopted by a few NRC applicants, the officials engaged in the scrutiny of NRC documents have to adopt measures for separating the wheat (genuine refugee registration certificates) from the chaff (their fakeries).

Talking to The Sentinel, State NRC Coordinator Prateek Hajela said: “Those with genuine refugee registration certificates have no problem in getting their names enrolled as Indians in the NRC being updated. However, during scrutiny it has come to light that a section of NRC applicants have submitted fake Xeroxed copies of refugee registration certificates for their enrollment in the NRC. Taking such incidents in view, we’ve already asked officials engaged in NRC update to adopt extra precautionary measures – scrupulously checking the original refugee registration certificates.”

The work for the publication of complete draft NRC is at the last stage.