SC pulls up Govt over NRC update delay
http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/detailsnew.asp?id=apr1113/at05
KALYAN BAROOAH
NEW DELHI, April 10 – Pulling up the Centre and Assam government for the delay in updating of the National Register for Citizens (NRC), the Supreme Court on Wednesday directed them and the Election Commission of India (EC) to submit written response within three weeks explaining the reasons for the delay.
The Apex Court’s direction came after the Counsel for the EC clarified that the Electoral Rolls of 1966 was available. The hearing was in connection with a Writ Petition (civil) filed by an NGO Assam Public Works (APW), which sought the Supreme Court’s direction on the guidelines for update of NRC.
A Division Bench of Justice HL Gokhale and Justice Ranjan Gogoi today after hearing the counsels for Government of India, Assam government and the EC, asked them the reasons for delay in preparing the NRC as the petition was pending since 2009. The Court remarked that even as the government took its time to finalise the mechanism for update of NRC, elections were held in 2011, and the general election of 2014 was approaching and Assembly election in the State is due in 2016.
The APW, which was represented by Counsel Arvind Kumar Sharma and Tanushree Sinha Roy mentioned about the ethic riots of Kokrajhar.
The Counsels for Centre and Assam government explained to the Court the modalities adopted for the update of NRC in accordance with the provisions of the Citizenship Act. The EC’s Counsel told the Court that the voter’s list of 1966 was available with it.
After hearing all the sides, the Bench directed them to file their written affidavits within three weeks. The case is now coming up for further hearing on May 8, informed Abhijeet Sarma, president of APWs.
The Supreme Court had on April 3 asked the EC, Assam government and the Centre to explain in details the mechanism for preparing the NRC. The Court sought clarifications regarding filling of forms the authorities responsible for verification of the filled forms. The matter was adjourned after the counsels sought seven days time to respond.
In its order, the Supreme Court said that although the State of Assam has taken some steps in the matter for preparing the concerned National Register for Citizens there appears to be some gap in the system in the sense that although some forms, as thought about, are to be distributed and received after they are filed, the mechanism thereafter till the stage of the Foreigners Tribunal under the Foreigners Act, 1946, is not clearly formulated.
It also wanted the Central government to specify how much time it needed to finalise the proposal with respect to entries of the NRC.
The petition called for identification of the pre March 25 1971 Bangladeshis along with their descendants and identification of the post March 24 1971 Bangladeshis as foreigners.
It pleaded that Government of Assam be asked to start the process of regularization of all pre March 25th March1971 immigrants, along with their descendants in all constituencies as the first prerequisites of the NRC update process. APWs also called for fulfilment of the clause 5.2 of the Assam Accord 1985.
The APW suggested setting up of district-wise empanelled committee under Deputy Commissioner and other officials and at least five prominent non-political members of the District for verifying the applications.
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Make modalities for NRC update public: AASU
STAFF Reporter
GUWAHATI, April 10 – The All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) today demanded that the Government should make the modalities to be used for updating the National Register of Citizens (NRC) public before starting the process.
The AASU today sent memorandum to the Chief Minister, Chief Secretary and Home Secretary demanding that the modalities should be made water tight so that no Bangladeshi national can include his or her name in the NRC with false documents. The AASU said that the process of updating the NRC should be started all over the state simultaneously.