Petitioner NGO in Assam seeks 100% 're-verification' of NRC list

Assam Public Works (APW), an NGO on whose PIL, the Supreme Court had ordered updating of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in 2009, have moved the apex court seeking 100% re-verification of the final list of the NRC.

In a petition, the APW sought the re-verification while claiming that names of nearly 80 lakh "foreigners" were included in the final list with fake documents. The NGO also sought a "proper investigation" by a judicial committee to find out the discrepancies involved in the updation of the NRC.

"We have requested in the affidavits that since the Supreme Court, in its order on August 13 last year observed that the validity of the NRC shall not be considered till the final settlement of the cases 562/2012 and 311/2015 (challenging the cut-off of March 24, 1971) in the Constitutional bench, we requested the court to give a break to the NRC process. We have also requested the court to issue an order to go for a 100% re-verification of the entire process," the APW said in a statement.

Alleging that nearly 80 lakh foreigners managed to make it to the NRC, the NGO claimed that such "foreigners" were taking control over large number of agricultural land, particularly in the Barkhetri and Sipajhar Assembly constituencies.

The final list of the NRC released on August 31 last year excluded over 19.06 lakh persons for failing to prove that they or their forefathers lived in Assam or any other parts of the country on or before March 24, 1971--the cut-off decided to detect foreigners in Assam.

Several organisations including APW and All Assam Students' Union refused to accept the list saying many foreigners were included while genuine citizens were left out. The BJP-led government in the state also rejected it on the same contention. Before the release of the list, the state government had sought 20% verification of the districts bordering Bangladesh but the apex court rejected the plea.