National Register of Citizens and Assam politics

Bowing to the increasing public pressure, the State Government had started the pilot project to update the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, but the project was stopped midway to allegedly protect the illegal immigrants from Bangladesh only to keep intact the vote-bank.

The North-eastern State of Assam has been raising this issue of illegal immigrants coming to India from Bangladesh for quite sometime. The All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) started the historic Assam Movement from 1979 to 1985 to protect the interest of the indigenous people. In 1985, the AASU leadership signed the Assam Accord in which all concerned had agreed to update the National Register of Citizens (NRC) taking March 25, 1971 as the cut-off date.

After signing the Accord, several governments came to power, but no one took the issue of to updating the NRC earnestly. If the NRC is updated taking March 25, 1971 as the cut-off date, thousands of Bangladeshis cannot be included in the NRC list.

Implementing the decision of a tripartite meeting of the Centre, State Governments and the AASU in presence of Prime Minister Dr Monmohan Singh, on May 5, 2005, Assam Government initiated a pilot project in Barpeta and Chaigaon sub-divisions to update the NRC from 1951 to 1971. Accordingly, the authorities started distributing forms to people. But the All Assam Minority Students Union (AAMSU) opposed the pilot project. More than ten hundred people took out a procession in Barpeta town, which later turned violent. Police opened fire killing four agitators and injuring several others.

After this incident, the State Government stopped the pilot project saying that the forms would be made easy so that common people can understand it. The State Government also decided to distribute the forms at the doorstep of each household. The State Government constituted a Group of Minister to draw a solution acceptable to all.

However, as many as 27 organizations including the AASU said that they would oppose the State Government move if it takes a decision to collect information by going to every household which is a violation of already framed modalities. AASU advisor Dr Samujjal Kumar Bhattacharya said that the forms in its present form is very simple, the duty of the government is to take initiative to make the people understand. Declining the point that the form will also create problems to the tea-tribes in Assam, tea tribes’ leader Prahlad Gowala said that it was baseless.

Keeping an eye on the next year’s assembly election, Tarun Gogoi Government allegedly wanted to delay the process. On the other hand, the Supreme Court has accepted a wit petition filled by the Assam Public Works (APW). The APW, in its petition, said that there are more than 40 lakhs ‘extra’ voters in the electoral role of Assam. The APW also appealed not to hold elections in the State till the names of ‘extra’ voters are withdrawn. Leaving out AAMSU, as many as 27 organizations, including some Muslim bodies, have demanded an early completion of the NRC. But the State Government is allegedly trying to buy time till the next assembly elections.