Imprisoned Congress leader P Chidambaram has lashed out at the National Register of Citizens (NRC) process in Assam, which least more than 19 lakh people 'stateless'.
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In a serious of tweets sent out from the official account of Chidambaram by his family, the former Finance Minister questioned what will be the fate of the people who were declared as 'foreigners' after the publication of the final NRC draft on August 31.
"If NRC is a 'legal process', how will the legal process deal with the 19 lakh persons who have been declared non-citizens?", asked Chidambaram. In another tweet, Chidambaram questioned that since Bangladesh has been assured that the NRC process will not affect Bangladesh, how will the Indian state deal with the 19 lakh persons?
Raising the question of anxiety faced by these people over exclusion from the NRC, Chidambaram queried, "How long will these 19 lakh persons live with uncertainty, anxiety and denial of civic and human rights?"
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The Congress leader further stated that as we celebrate Mahatma Gandhi's humanism, we are obliged to answer these questions.
Those who were declared as 'foreigners' after the final NRC, must now visit the Foreigners' Tribunals to prove citizenship.
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