HT Digital
GUWAHATI, Mar 6: The Opposition MLAs in the Assam Legislative Assembly (ALA) expressed serious objections to the reported harassment of true Indian citizens by the border police, who they allege are indiscriminately labeling them as ‘D’ voters and sending them to foreigners tribunals (FTs).
Referring the matter under Rule 50, AIUDF MLA Aminul Islam said, “If the border police are suspicious of a person’s citizenship, they must verify the documents themselves or approach the gaon burah (village head). They should send the case to an FT only if they notice inconsistencies. But certain officers are randomly selecting names from voter rolls and sending them to FTs.”
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CPI (M) MLA Manoranjan Talukdar criticized the fairness of the system and said, “D voters are predominantly Hindu Bengalis and minorities. How is it that one member in a family can be labeled a D voter whereas others are not? This goes on to prove shortcomings in the system.”
Reiterating the same concerns, Congress MLA Nurul Huda pointed out the fate of foreigners declared as such, stating, “A large number of people have been unnecessarily labeled as foreigners and now languish in detention centers. If any such person dies, why are his body sent back to his village and not Bangladesh? If they were actually foreigners, their bodies should be sent.”
UPPL MLA Gobinda Basumatary demanded tight action in terms of deportation and said, “If the government is sure that a person is a foreigner, then they should be deported at once. There is no reason that they should be lodged in detention camps for years together.”
Joining the political side, AIUDF MLA Ashraful Hussain stated, “The D voter problem began in 1997 because of an instruction by the Election Commission of India. This label takes away all citizenship rights from a person. Because it is a political issue, it needs a political solution.”
Independent MLA Akhil Gogoi emphasized completion of the NRC by stating, “If the NRC were done, this problem would not have arisen. Those in the NRC are Indians, and others are not. Even without an extradition treaty with Bangladesh, deportation becomes an issue. This House must adopt a resolution and pass it to the central government.
Denying opposition charges of border police harassment, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary refuted allegations and defended the border police. “If a D voter feels aggrieved, they can appeal to the High Court or Supreme Court to establish their citizenship. The border police send cases to FTs only when they do not have prima facie evidence that the person is an Indian citizen,” he added.
