4,795 "illegal foreigners" included in final NRC list: Report

DISPUR: In a remarkable turn of events, it has come to light that 4,795 persons included in the final draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) that was published on August 31, 2019 could be "illegal foreigners". This was reportedly informed to the Gauhati High Court by the NRC authorities via an affidavit.

When Inside Northeast reached out to NRC coordinator Hitesh Dev Sarma to confirm the report, he said, "I am not supposed to divulge these details. However, I did submit an affidavit to the High Court recently."

The National Register of Citizens (NRC) is a list of people who can prove they came to the state by 24 March 1971, the day before neighbouring Bangladesh declared independence from Pakistan.

The NRC was created in 1951 to determine who was born in Assam and is therefore Indian, and who might be a migrant from neighbouring Bangladesh. The register was updated for the first time.

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Families in the state have been required to provide documentation to show their lineage, with those who cannot prove their citizenship deemed illegal foreigners.

After the publication of the final list, many, including original petitioners Assam Public Works (APW), have claimed that the names of "illegal foreigners" as well as "jihadis" have been included in the list, while the former NRC coordinator bureaucrat Prateek Hajela has come under the scanner for "corruption."

Meanwhile, the BJP-led Government in the State has called for reverification of the list, and Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said a decision in this regard shall be taken if the saffron party assumes power after the elections in 2021.

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