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The Print
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Print
Assam to drop cases of pre-2015 non-Muslim illegal immigrants from Foreigners Tribunals
Top officials held a video conference on July 17 to discuss a host of issues, including those 'related to the Foreigners Tribunal with reference to Citizenship Amendment Act' and issued the directive accordingly. According to a directive signed by Additional Chief Secretary (Home and Political) Ajay Tewari on July 22, all district commissioners and senior superintendents of police have been asked to review the status of foreigners like Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Rohingyas. Guwahati, Aug 7 (PTI) The Assam government has instructed all districts to drop ongoing cases of suspected non-Muslim illegal foreigners entering the state before 2015 from the Foreigners Tribunals, following implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. However, it has not been made public yet. 'As per the amendments made to the Citizenship Act, the FTs are not supposed to pursue cases of foreigners belonging to the six specified communities (Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, Sikh, Parsi and Jain communities), who had entered Assam on or prior to 31.12.2014. 'It was suggested to drop all such cases. In this regard, the district commissioner and the Senior SPs should immediately convey a meeting with their respective FT members, and also review the developments periodically and submit the action taken report to this department,' said the minutes of the meeting, which were sent to the districts. It also suggested that all such foreigners should be encouraged and supported for applying for Indian citizenship, as per provision of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. 'The Govt of Assam had issued clear cut instructions for withdrawal of all cases filed against people belonging to the Gorkha and Koch Rajbongshi communities. This should be complied with forthwith,' it said. As per legal provisions, only FTs can declare a person a foreigner in Assam, and subsequently higher courts can be approached if the verdict is not favourable. In July last year, the Assam government had asked its Border Police wing not to forward the cases of non-Muslim illegal immigrants entering the state before 2015 to Foreigners Tribunals, and instead, advised them to apply for citizenship through CAA. The Centre had in July, 2024 implemented the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, notifying the rules four years after the law was passed by Parliament to fast-track citizenship for undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014. According to the Assam Accord, names of all foreigners coming to the state on or after March 25, 1971 would be detected and deleted from electoral rolls and steps would be taken to deport them. In a majority verdict, the Supreme Court on October 17 last year upheld the constitutional validity of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, which grants Indian citizenship to immigrants who came to Assam between January 1, 1966 and March 25, 1971. PTI TR RBT This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
Scroll.in
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Scroll.in
Assam to drop foreigners tribunal cases against non-Muslims who entered state before 2015, cites CAA
The Assam Government has asked district authorities and members of the foreigners tribunals to drop cases against members of six communities – Hindu, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain and Parsi – who entered the state on or before December 31, 2014, citing the Citizenship Amendment Act. The state's home and political department held a meeting on July 17 and had discussed 'issues related to Foreigners Tribunal with reference to Citizenship Amendment Act' and the 'dropping off cases'. The meeting was held following a directive from Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. The Citizenship Amendment Act is aimed to provide a fast track to citizenship to refugees from six minority religious communities, except Muslims, from Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan, on the condition that they have lived in India for six years and have entered the country by December 31, 2014. It was passed by Parliament in December 2019. The Union government notified the rules under the Act in March 2024. The foreigners tribunals in Assam are quasi-judicial bodies that adjudicate on matters of citizenship based on lineage and a 1971 cut-off date. They rely primarily on documents submitted by persons to establish their family's residency in Assam or India before 1971. The tribunals have been accused of arbitrariness and bias, and declaring people foreigners on the basis of minor spelling mistakes, a lack of documents or lapses in memory. Of the 1.6 lakh persons declared foreigners so far, more than 69,500 are Hindus. The department, under which the border police and the foreigners tribunals function, directed district commissioners, police chiefs and members of the tribunals to submit an action taken report in the matter. 'As per the amendments made to the Citizenship Act, the FTs are not supposed to pursue cases of foreigners belonging to the six specified communities (Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, Sikh, Parsi and Jain communities) who had entered into Assam on or prior to 31.12.2014,' showed the minutes of the meeting signed by Ajay Tiwari, the additional chief secretary, home and political department. Scroll has seen the document. 'It was suggested to drop all such cases,' the minutes added. It added: 'In this regard, the district commissioner and the senior SPs [superintendent of police] should immediately convene a meeting with their respective FT members and also review the developments periodically and submit the action taken report to this department.' The notification sent to district authorities said that 'foreigners should be encouraged and supported' for applying for Indian citizenship as per provisions of the Citizenship Amendment Act. It also noted that the Assam government had issued 'clear cut' instructions for withdrawal of all cases filed against persons belonging to the Gorkha and Koch-Rajbongshi communities. 'This should be complied with forthwith,' the government said. In July 2024, the Assam government had asked the state's border police not to forward cases of non-Muslims who had entered India illegally before 2014 to foreigners tribunals. The border police, which investigates citizenship cases, was told by the Assam home department at the time that the undocumented immigrants from the six communities should 'be advised' instead to apply for citizenship on the Citizenship Amendment Act portal, and that their cases would be decided by the Union government. Sarma had said at the time that existing cases would not be dropped. Critics contend that the Citizenship Amendment Act undermines the 1985 Assam Accord between the Union government and the leaders of the Assam Movement, which was launched in 1979 to identify and deport undocumented immigrants. The accord stipulates that anyone who entered Assam after the midnight of March 24, 1971, be identified and deported. Assamese nationalist view 'illegal migrants', irrespective of their religion, as a threat to the state's culture and resources. The Citizenship Amendment Act had sparked massive protests in Assam and several other parts of the country in 2019 and 2020. However, the amended law was welcomed by Assam's Bengali Hindus. In August 2019, Assam published a National Register of Citizens with the aim of separating Indian citizens from undocumented immigrants living in the state. More than 19 lakh persons, or 5.7% of the applicants, were left out of the final list. In March 2024, Sarma said five lakh Bengali Hindus, two lakh Assamese Hindu groups Koch-Rajbongshi, Das, Kalita and Sarma (Assamese), and 1.5 lakh Gorkhas had been left out of the National Register of Citizens. The chief minister had also said that seven lakh Muslims are among the 19 lakh persons excluded from the register. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party had claimed that Hindus excluded from the register in Assam would be able to gain citizenship under the amended law. There have been fears that Muslims would be the only ones who stand to lose their citizenship in such an exercise.
Time of India
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Another Cooch Behar man gets Assam NRC notice
Jalpaiguri: Yet another Cooch Behar resident has received an NRC notice from Assam's Foreigners Tribunal. Baxirhat resident Dipankar Sarkar, who works as a carpenter in Guwahati's Paltan Bazar, has been residing in Assam for over a decade. In 2014, he was summoned by Assam Police on suspicion of being a Bangladeshi intruder and a case was registered against him in 2015. The notice, dated Jan 24 this year, was received by Sarkar in March. It directs him to appear before the tribunal with documents to establish his Indian nationality. You Can Also Check: Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata Sarkar disclosed the receipt of the notice on Thursday evening. Soon, Cooch Behar TMC president Avijit De Bhowmik shared an image of the notice on social media. While TMC has advised Sarkar to disregard the notice and assured him of all necessary assistance, BJP accused TMC of trying to play the "Bengali card". Similar notices were earlier issued to three other residents of Cooch Behar — Uttam Kumar Brajabashi, Nishikanta Das and Mamina Bibi.
Indian Express
19-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘Divisive agenda in Assam' vs ‘encouraging illegal encroachment': Amid citizenship row, Mamata, Himanta in war of words
A war of words erupted between West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Assam counterpart, Himanta Biswa Sarma, on Saturday, with both taking to social media to levy accusations at each other. While Banerjee hit out at the 'divisive agenda of the BJP in Assam', saying it has 'crossed all limits', Sarma hit back, accusing her of compromising the state's future by 'encouraging illegal encroachment by a particular community'. In a post on X, Banerjee said, 'The second most spoken language in the country, Bangla, is also the second most spoken language of Assam. To threaten citizens, who want to coexist peacefully respecting all languages and religions, with persecution for upholding their own mother tongue is discriminatory and unconstitutional.' 'This divisive agenda of the BJP in Assam has crossed all limits and people of Assam will fight back. I stand with every fearless citizen who is fighting for the dignity of their language and identity, and their democratic rights,' she added. The post has come in the backdrop of Banerjee raising the issue of the alleged mistreatment of Bengali migrant labourers in other states such as Odisha, Delhi, and Assam. She had also recently called for a unified protest by all Opposition parties after a farmer in Coochbehar district was served a notice by Assam's Foreigners Tribunal saying that he was an 'illegal immigrant' who entered the state without valid documents between 1966 and March 24, 1971. Reacting to her post, Sarma took to X, saying, 'Didi, let me remind you—In Assam, we are not fighting our own people. We are fearlessly resisting the ongoing, unchecked Muslim infiltration from across the border, which has already caused an alarming demographic shift. In several districts, Hindus are now on the verge of becoming a minority in their own land…'. 'This is not a political narrative—it's a reality. Even the Supreme Court of India has termed such infiltration as external aggression. And yet, when we rise to defend our land, culture, and identity, you choose to politicize it,' he added. 'We do not divide people by language or religion. Assamese, Bangla, Bodo, Hindi—all languages and communities have coexisted here. But no civilisation can survive if it refuses to protect its borders and its cultural foundation,' Sarma further said. Hitting out at Banerjee, he said, 'While we are acting decisively to preserve Assam's identity, you, Didi, have compromised Bengal's future—encouraging illegal encroachment by a particular community, appeasing one religious community for vote banks, and remaining silent as border infiltration eats away at national integrity—all just to stay in power.' Assam will continue 'to fight to preserve its heritage, its dignity, and its people—with courage and constitutional clarity', Sarma added. Ravik Bhattacharya is the Chief of Bureau of The Indian Express, Kolkata. Over 20 years of experience in the media industry and covered politics, crime, major incidents and issues, apart from investigative stories in West Bengal, Odisha, Assam and Andaman Nicobar islands. Ravik won the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award in 2007 for political reporting. Ravik holds a bachelor degree with English Hons from Scottish Church College under Calcutta University and a PG diploma in mass communication from Jadavpur University. Ravik started his career with The Asian Age and then moved to The Statesman, The Telegraph and Hindustan Times. ... Read More
Time of India
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Himanta counters after Mamata raises hue & cry over Assam foreigner tribunal's notice to Rajbanshi person
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Guwahati: After West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that Assam's foreigners tribunal has served notice to Uttam Kumar Brajabasi, a Rajbanshi resident of Cooch Behar and is trying to implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in West Bengal, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma countered it, stating that it is a judicial process and that the government has already made the decision to drop cases against the Koch Rajbanshi community.'I am shocked and deeply disturbed to learn that the Foreigners Tribunal in Assam has issued an NRC notice to Uttam Kumar Brajabasi, a Rajbanshi resident of Dinhata in Cooch Behar for over 50 years. Despite furnishing valid identity documents, he is being harassed on suspicion of being a foreigner/illegal migrant. This calls for urgent unity among all opposition parties to stand up against the BJP's divisive and oppressive machinery. Bengal will not stand by as the constitutional fabric of India is torn apart,' Banerjee wrote on X on on Thursday said, 'It is a judicial process. The state government has already recommended that cases against the Koch Rajbanshi should be withdrawn and the process is ongoing. The person's lawyer should have informed him that he belonged to the Koch Rajbanshi and that the government has withdrawn cases against them.'He added, 'The advocate has not pleaded his case. The advocate did not convey to the court that the person belongs to the Rajbanshi community and that cases should be withdrawn. This person has two advocates. This person is a citizen of Assam and temporarily went to West Bengal. He is from Rehabari in Guwahati.'Sarma has stated that five Bangladeshis and three Rohingyas were pushed back. He stated on X, 'Early this morning, @assampolice PUSHED BACK 5 Bangladeshis and 3 Rohingyas to Bangladesh from Cachar and Sribhumi. Illegal infiltrators WILL NOT BE ALLOWED to stay in Assam and threaten our identity.'
