New Delhi: In what could led to fresh political storm in Assam, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has again pitched for implementation of National Register of Citizens (NRC). He also told the press that Assam govt is mulling to move Supreme Court in the matter.
“We had said earlier also that National Register of Citizens (NRC) should be reviewed and done afresh. Our discussion with the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) is going on,” Sarma told reporters on Sunday.
The NRC, first prepared in 1951, comprises of names of all legal Indian citizens. The list was updated in 2018 in the state to isolate illegal immigrants from countries like Pakistan & Bangladesh but the move received backlash because the list left out about 40 lakh people.
Earlier, Assam minister Atul Bora stated that state govt has decided to move Supreme Court aiming re-verification of the NRC.
Bora said that the decision to move apex court was taken during the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) meeting and other indigenous organisations.
“They are not accepting the list of the NRC, which was published in August 2019. And have decided to move to the Supreme Court by seeking re-verification,” he told media.
Assam govt is also holding talks with AASU leadership to discuss the implementation of the Assam Accord.
The NRC roll out has been a contentious issue and intensified political fight between parties. BJP govt at the Centre called it an essential move in national interest while Opposition went all guns blazing against the controversial law. It alleged that by clubbing Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAA) and NRC, BJP govt is trying to force out minorities from the country and also depriving them of legal rights.
In the NRC exercise, Assam govt received about 3.29 crore applications but the draft list included names of only 2.9 crore people. In the final list, about 19.06 people were left out creating big political storm in the state.
