SC seeks Centre, Assam’s stand on petition seeking ID cards for those included in NRC
The National Register of Citizens was updated in Assam in 2019, but has not been notified yet.
The Supreme Court on Monday issued notices seeking the stand of the Centre, Assam government and the Registrar General of Citizen Registration, on a plea seeking directions for identity cards to be issued to those included in the National Register of Citizens in the state, Live Law reported.
The Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind and All Assam Minorities Student Union approached the court to seek directions for statutory steps to be taken as part of the National Register of Citizens at the earliest.
This includes issuing National Identity Cards to those part of the list, as well as issuing rejection orders and commencing appeals for those who have been excluded, Live Law reported.
The petitioners argue that only when those included receive ID cards, will those who do not receive such cards, have the right to appeal before the courts.
The petitioners highlighted that these steps, that have remained pending for over six years since 2019, have in effect left the NRC exercise incomplete, “unconstitutional, arbitrary and violative of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution”.
Article 14 guarantees equality before law and equal protection of laws while Article 21 guarantees the right to life and personal liberty.
“All we ask is that the final step be concluded,” Advocate Indira Jaisingh, who was appearing for the petitioners, said. “Having concluded the 99.9% of the exercise, it is only the remaining 1%.”
Assam published a National Register of Citizens on August 31, 2019, with the aim to separate Indian citizens from undocumented immigrants living in the state. Residents had to prove that they or their ancestors had entered Assam before midnight on March 24, 1971 in order for them to be included in the list.
The exercise ended up excluding 19 lakh residents, who make up around 6% of Assam’s entire population. The updated list, however, has not been notified six years on.
According to the 1955 Citizenship Act, the Union government is required to issue a National Identity Card to all citizens who are part of either the National Register of Indian Citizens or National Register of Citizens.
