There is no provision of re-scrutiny in NRC, writes Sishir Kumar Dey

//Sishir Kumar Dey//

Final NRC in Assam was published on 31-08-2019 by competent Authority in culmination of the Notification of RGCR / RGI dated 05-12-2013 (which got amended 8 times later, last being on 31-07-2019) and as directed & monitored by the hon’ble Supreme Court. Names of citizens were included after multi layered extensive verification, scrutiny, cross check, hearings and after deciding claims & objections. All included persons are legally presumed to be genuine citizens. There is no provision of re-scrutiny to detect so called ‘inclusions by means of forgery’. It’s a political propaganda only, having no lawful nexus with fact in it. If any wrong entry is otherwise detected, process of Rule 10 of NRC Rules 2003 shall apply which procedure is not easy. In such a case, prima-facie burden to show justification for suspecting forgery will lie on the person who will claim ingenuity of person included.
The documents submitted by the applicants are protected by Supreme Court through order dated 13.08.2019 directing to create aadhaar like security regime for NRC data before handing over the same to State or Central governments. So these data are made inaccessible to all. This effectively gave finality of names included in Final NRC.
Excluded persons only will get opportunity to appeal and a further chance to get their names included in NRC. This appeal process is illegally kept withheld. There are resolutions of NRC Coordination Committee meetings headed by the Chief Secretary of Assam and by Union Home Secretary, to start supplying copies of Rejection Orders to the excluded persons paving way to challenge these orders before Foreigners Tribunals by filing Appeals. RGCR / RGI also directed State Coordinator of Assam NRC, through several official letters to start supplying copies of Rejection Orders. But illegally and in defiance of the said resolutions and directions, the process of issuing Rejection Orders have not started yet. The State Government in collaboration with UIDAI, along with the process of deciding claims and objections, had collected biometric data of about 27 lakh persons for whom issuance of aadhaar had been kept withheld till final publication of NRC. But it’s 4years 3months, aadhaar have not yet been issued to any of these 27 lakhs, most of whose names appeared in Final NRC.