BARPETA, Sept 3: A total of 28 people, including nine women, from Barpeta district of Assam were shifted to a transit camp in Goalpara after they were declared foreigners by a tribunal, police said on Tuesday.
It was a heart-wrenching scene for the family members when their dear ones were packed in a bus at the office of the Superintendent of Police on Monday and taken to the dedicated detention centre, now called a transit camp.
Barpeta Superintendent of Police Sushanta Biswa Sarma said, “These people were declared foreigners by the Foreigners Tribunal after proper hearings. As per its order, we carried out the transfer of these foreign nationals to the camp.
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The Tribunals are quasi-judicial bodies that decide the citizenship status of persons living in Assam who are suspected to be foreigners.
Around 100 Foreigners Tribunals functioning in Assam. According to the protocol, these people will be sent back to their country of origin after due process by the Ministry of External Affairs, provided they do not move to the Gauhati High Court.
Sarma said that the group, comprising nine women and 19 men, was escorted under heavy security to the transit camp at Matia in Goalpara district.
The detainees used to live in various parts of Barpeta district before their relocation, he added.
The government constructed the first dedicated centre at Matia in Goalpara district to keep the suspected and declared foreigners found in Assam.
The Matia centre can house 3,000 inmates, including 400 females. The facility has hospitals, schools, recreation centres, dining and other amenities. (PTI)
