Guwahati: The much-awaited updated Final National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam was released on Saturday, excluding names of 19.07 lakh applicants, NRC State Coordinator's office said here on Saturday.
Names of 3.11 crore applicants were included in the final NRC, it said in a statement.
Some 19,06,677 people have been excluded from the final list, which names 3,11,21,004 people as Indian citizens.
The NRC has immense significance for the people of Assam as the state witnessed a six-year-long movement between 1979 to 1985 seeking detection and deportation of illegal Bangladeshis.
The NRC updation process was started in the state on orders of the Supreme Court in 2013. It is being carried out by the Registrar General of India and is being monitored by the apex court.
The process of NRC update in Assam differs from the rest of the country and is governed by Rule 4A and the corresponding Schedule of the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.
"These rules have been framed as per the cut-off date of March 24 (midnight), 1971 decided as per the Assam Accord. The process of receipt of NRC application forms started at the end of May 2015 and ended on August 31, 2015. A total of 3,30,27,661 people applied for it through 68,37,660 applications," said a statement issued by the NRC authorities on Saturday.
"The particulars submitted by the applicants were taken up for scrutiny to determine eligibility of their inclusion in the NRC.
"The NRC update is a mammoth exercise with around 52,000 state government officials working on it over a prolonged period. All decisions of inclusion and exclusion in the list are taken by these statutory officers. The entire process has been meticulously carried out in an objective and transparent manner," it said.
Surprisingly enough, parties across the political divide called the final NRC faulty, with some saying they would appeal against it in the Supreme Court.
Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who is also the convener of the North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), the NDA's version in the northeast, deplored that many people who came to India as refugees before 1971 were not included in the final citizenship roll.
He demanded that the Supreme Court allow reverification of at least 20 per cent of samples included in the list in districts bordering Bangladesh and 10 per cent in the rest of Assam.
Thrice chief minister of Assam Tarun Gogoi of the Congress said the Centre had failed in its duty to come up with a flawless NRC and that the people of Assam were feeling "helpless".
"The way the NRC was prepared casually, illegal immigrants have been included in the list and genuine Indians excluded. It is the responsibility of the Government of India. We feel helpless.
"The NRC has left 19 lakh people in a precarious situation. They are neither the citizens of India nor are they foreigners...they are neither here nor there. The NRC doesn't come in the way of detecting foreigners. The government must do its duty," he said.
The Assam government sought to allay the fears of those left out of the NRC, with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary saying it will extend legal support to genuine Indian citizens.
The draft NRC, which was published last year, found 2,89,83,677 persons eligible for inclusion in the list. "Thereafter, claims were received from 36,26,630 people against their exclusion," the statement said, adding that a verification was also carried out of the persons included in the Draft NRC under Clause 4(3) of the Schedule of the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.
"Objections were received against inclusion of 1,87,633 persons, whose names had appeared in the Complete Draft. Another Additional Draft Exclusions List, which was published on June 26, 2019, had 1,02,462 names," it said.
"Taking into account all the persons already included and after disposal of all the claims and objections and proceedings under Clause 4(3), it has been found that a total of 3,11,21,004 persons are eligible for inclusion in the Final NRC leaving out 19,06,657 persons, including those who did not submit their claims," said the statement.
The government has assured that the people left out of the final NRC will not be detained and they can appeal against their exclusion in the Foreigners' Tribunals (FT) and subsequently move higher courts.
The Assam government will establish 400 Foreigners' Tribunals in the state to deal with such appeals.
The status of both inclusion and exclusion can be viewed online in the NRC website, www.nrcassam.nic.in.
The final list was published at 10am and the hard copies of the Supplementary List of Inclusions are available for public viewing at the NRC Seva Kendras (NSK), offices of the deputy commissioner and offices of the Circle Officer during office hours, the statement said.
Here are the guidelines to check your name in the National Register of Citizens list:
You can check your name in the Assam NRC list offline or online.
Check Assam NRC list offline:
You can visit your NRC Seva Kendra, office of Circle Officer or Office of Deputy Commissioner to check the names in the supplementary inclusion list on all working days from 10am to 4pm.
Check Assam NRC List 2019 online:
To check your name in the NRC list online, keep your Application Reference Number or ARN handy.
Step 1: Log on to any of the following websites: www.nrcassam.nic.in or www.assam.mygov.in
Step 2: Check on the link that says, "Supplementary Inclusions/Exclusions Lists (Final NRC) status"
Step 3: Punch in your Application Reference Number (ARN) to check if your name has been added to the final NRC list.
