ASSAM NRC- Notes for upsc

Over 19 lakh excluded from Assam’s final NRC

News

• More than 19 lakh of the 3.29 crore applicants in Assam were left out of the final National Register of Citizens (NRC) that was published to conclude a Supreme Court-monitored exercise that took five years and ₹1,220 crore.

Final National Register of Citizens

• State Home Department officials said though the NRC was called ‘final’, the 19,06,657 people excluded would have opportunities to be back on the citizens’ list if they appeal against their exclusion and establish their citizenship via courts.
• Each excluded person will have 120 days to file an appeal at any of the existing 100 Foreigners’ Tribunals 200 more are to be established within a month which in turn will have to dispose of the cases within six months.
• The appellant then has the option of approaching the High Court and Supreme Court.
• The process of receipt of NRC application forms started in May 2015 and ended on August 31, 2015. A total of 3,30,27,661 members applied through 68,37,660 applications. The particulars submitted by the applicants were taken up for scrutiny to determine the eligibility of their inclusion in the NRC.
• The complete NRC draft was published, wherein 2,89,83,677 people were found eligible for inclusion while 40,007,707 were excluded. Thereafter, claims were received from 36,26,630 people against exclusions.
• Verification was also carried out of persons included in the draft NRC under Clause 4(3) of the Schedule of the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.

Timeline of the immigration issue in Assam

• 1950: Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act comes into force following influx of refugees from then East Pakistan to Assam after partition.
• 1951: First Census of Independent India conducted.
• Based on Census, first NRC compiled.
• 1957:Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act repealed.
• 1964-1965: Influx of refugees from East Pakistan due to disturbances in that country.
• 1971:Fresh influx due to riot and war in East Pakistan. Independence Bangladesh comes into existence.
• 1979-1985:Six-year-long Assam agitation, spearheaded by the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) and All Assam Gana Sangram Parishad (AAGSP) for detection, disenfranchisement and deportation of foreigners.
• 1983: Massacre at Nellie in Central Assam which claimed the lives of over 3,000 people. Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act passed.
• 1985:Assam Accord signed by the Centre, the state, AASU and AAGSP in the presence of then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. It stated, among other clauses, that foreigners who came to Assam on or after March 25, 1971 shall be expelled.
• 1997:Election Commission decides to add ‘D’ (doubtful) against names of voters whose claim to Indian citizenship is doubtful.
• 2005: Supreme Court strikes down IMDT Act as unconstitutional. Tripartite meeting among Centre, state government and AASU decides to update 1951 NRC. But no major development takes place.
• 2009: Assam Public Works (APW), an NGO, files case in Supreme Court praying for deletion of foreigners’s name in electoral rolls and updation of NRC.
• 2010:Pilot project starts in Chaygaon, Barpeta to update NRC. Project successful in Chaygaon. Four killed in violence in Barpeta. Project shelved.
• 2013: Supreme Court takes up APW petition, directs Centre, state to begin the process for updating NRC. NRC State Coordinator’s office set up.
• 2015:Updation of NRC process begins.
• 2017:On December 31 midnight, Draft NRC published with names of 1.9 crore of total 3.29 crore applicants.
• July 30, 2018: Another Draft NRC published, 40 lakh of 2.9 crore people excluded.
• June 26, 2019:Publication of Additional Draft Exclusion List of 1,02,462 released.
• August 31, 2019:Final NRC released.

Sources: The Hindu, Indian Express.