GUWAHATI: Anti-influx forum, Prabajan Virodhi Manch (PVM) has countered Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for stating that the recently-published National Register of Citizens in the state should be scrapped in favour of a nationwide NRC, saying the statement is intended to sow confusion and divert people’s attention from the core issue of the Citizenship Amendment Bill.
In a statement issued here on Thursday, PVM convener, Upamanyu Hazarika said the announcement by Union home minister, Amit Shah that NRC would be undertaken nationwide, and yet again for Assam, “has been interpreted by Sarma to mean that NRC for Assam should be scrapped and fresh NRC undertaken on a uniform national cut-off year basis.”
“This only shows and demonstrates that CAB to be introduced and passed in Parliament next week is the over-riding priority and not the interests of the indigenous people as no concrete steps have been spelt out by Sarma for a uniform cut-off year,” Hazarika said.
“In actual fact, religious minorities from neighbouring countries will get citizenship in India and Assam consequently, and to assuage the sentiments or forestall any protests from the indigenous people, yet another promise of NRC has been made simply to divert attention of the people,” he alleged.
The Union home minister had also said that those left out of the present NRC would be provided legal assistance. “This in fact upholds the present NRCs validity and which doesn’t mean that it will be scrapped. Dr Sarma’s statement is therefore intended to sow confusion and is precisely the situation which occurred in January 2019, when prior to the introduction of the CAB, a Bill granting Scheduled Tribe status to six communities in Assam was introduced, which lapsed with the last Parliament and there was no further introduction of the Bill in the present Parliament,” Hazarika said.
The NRC data in Assam, he pointed out, has already been compiled, on 1951 and 1971 cut-off year basis, and even today the present NRC which is on 1971 cut-off year basis can be easily converted to 1951 as the cut-off year as the data has been compiled and is available.
“What NRC in Assam needs is a re-verification of a large number of foreigners included in it, particularly in the migrant dominated and border districts,” he said.
Hazarika further said that if Sarma and chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal were really sincere about protecting their own people, then they could in one sitting of the state Assembly, reserve land, employment, trade licences and seats in higher educational institutions only for those who were citizens prior to 1951 as a first step and thereafter have political reservation for indigenous communities.