The 4,007,707 human question .....Assam list excludes millions

Women at an NRC seva kendra in Mayong, 55km from Guwahati, on Monday to verify whether their names have been included in the National Register of Citizens. (AP) 

Pankaj Sarma and Agencies, TT, Jul 31, 2018, Guwahati: Over 40 lakh people, more than the populations of Uruguay and Qatar, have been excluded from the final draft of a list of Indian citizens living in Assam published on Monday, prompting apprehension among minorities and assurances from the government.

The draft National Register of Citizens, whose release is part of an exercise to weed out illegal immigrants, carried 28,983,677 names out of the 32,991,384 applicants, a difference of 4,007,707, Registrar-General of India Sailesh announced.

Officials repeatedly emphasised this was only the final draft and not the final NRC, and those missing from the list would have ample opportunity to stake claim or file fresh applications, and even go to court.

Several people who were not included in the register expressed worry about being sent to detention centres or deported. But Satyendra Garg, joint secretary (northeast) of the Union home ministry, said there's no "question of reference to the foreigners tribunals or sending anybody to detention camps based on this draft".

He warned that "anybody creating mischief will be sternly dealt with". Assemblies of five or more people have been banned across Assam over the past few days.

Soldiers stood guard at government offices where thousands queued up to check their names on the NRC.

Habibur Rahman said in Sonitpur, about 200km east of Guwahati, that four of his family members did not figure on the list. "I'm surprised....I had submitted all requisite documents," he said.

"People who don't find their names in the complete draft have the legal right to apply again by filing claims between August 30 and September 28," Sailesh said.

"Starting August 7, they will be able to know the reasons for non-inclusion by visiting the NRC Seva Kendras and enquiring from the local registrar of citizens registration."

But Nur Banu, 45, whose family of six was missing from the list, said: "Although we have been told we can apply again, we are worried about our future."

Samir Das, a Bengali-speaking businessman in Hojai, said he and his family had not been listed. "We are genuine Indian citizens, and maybe there were some technical problems," he said. "We will apply once again."

NRC state coordinator Prateek Hajela said the decision on the eligibility of four categories of people, numbering 2.48 lakh, had been kept on hold. He said these were D (doubtful) voters, their descendants, people whose cases or references (by police) were pending at the foreigners tribunals, and their descendants.

Sailesh, asked whether anyone who figures on the final draft could be excluded from the final list, said they could. People can file objections against anyone they think is wrongly included in the final draft.

A first draft containing 1.9 crore names had been published on December 31 last year. Asked how many names from the first draft were deleted from the final draft, Sailesh said the figure would be provided in due course.

On July 2, the Supreme Court had accepted a plea from Hajela to exclude 1.5 lakh people who had been included in the first draft but were later found ineligible. Hajela left for Delhi on Monday evening for Tuesday's apex court hearing of the NRC case.

Some critics see the citizenship test as a measure supported by the BJP, which rules at the Centre and in Assam, to drive out Muslims. The BJP denies any bias, saying it opposes the appeasement of any community.

Assam has been racked by sectarian violence over the years with residents, including tribal groups, clashing with both Hindu and Muslim settlers, whom they accuse of plundering resources and taking away jobs. Over 2,000 Bengali Muslims were massacred by raiders in Nellie, central Assam, in 1983.