No report sought from Assam police about threat to Hajela: IGP
GUWAHATI: The Supreme Court of India on Friday directed the Centre and the Assam government to transfer National Register of Citizens (NRC) Assam state coordinator, Prateek Hajela to Madhya Pradesh for the maximum period.
A special bench comprising Chief Justice of India, Ranjan Gogoi, Justice, S.A Bobde and Justice, R. F Nariman ordered the inter-cadre transfer of Prateek Hajela on deputation.
“Upon hearing Mr. Prateek Hajela, learned State Coordinator, the learned Attorney General and the learned Solicitor General and taking into account the totality of the facts of the case, we order for the inter-cadre transfer of Mr. Hajela to the State of Madhya Pradesh on deputation for the maximum period permissible under the relevant rules/regulations,” the order by the special bench, read.
“The notification consequent to the above direction will be issued by the competent authority of the Union of India/State Government forthwith and in any case within seven days from today,” it read.
A 1995-batch IAS officer of the Assam-Meghalaya cadre with B. Tech in Electronics from Indian Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, Hajela was appointed by the Supreme Court as the Assam state coordinator in September 2013 to prepare the NRC. He had since led the gargantuan exercise of finalisation and publication of the Assam NRC.
The final NRC was released on August 31, 2019 with 19, 06,657 excluded out of a total of 3, 30, 27,661 applicants.
The apex court hearing came up on Friday following a writ petition (civil) No 274/2009 on the NRC issue by Assam Public Works, a Guwahati-based NGO and the original petitioner in the Supreme Court, which led to the NRC update process six years ago.
The next date of hearing on the issue has been fixed on November 26, 2019. Assam police was not asked to submit any report about perception of any threat to NRC coordinator Prateek Hajela whose transfer the Supreme Court ordered “forthwith” on Friday, a top Assam police official said.
The official also said the state police was not aware of any threat to Hajela, an Assam-Meghalaya cadre IAS officer of the 1995 batch who oversaw the hugely contentious exercise of updating the National Register of Citizens (NRC), which validates Indian citizenship of the residents of the north- eastern state.
“Reports about threat perception to Hajela have not been sought from us. There have been, however, criticism against Hajela in the social media. Various organisations in Assam are vocal on the NRC with many speaking against the NRC and the state coordinator,” IG (Special Branch) Hiren Nath said.
(With inputs from PTI)