Even as NRC officials raced against time to complete their job, BJP said it had information about ‘foreigners’... Read More

GUWAHATI: With just five days to go for the publication of Assam 's final citizenship rolls, the ruling BJP on Monday said it feared many "genuine Indian citizens" might not make it to the list because NRC coordinator Prateek Hajela had carried out the updation exercise in consultation with "just two-three organisations".

Addressing a presser, state BJP president Ranjeet Kumar Dass said the party had received complaints from hundreds of people whose names were in the 2017 draft NRC but excluded from the revised draft published in July last year.

"NRC coordinator Prateek Hajela has been carrying out the revision based on his own opinion and those of two to three organisations since the SC asked CM Sarbananda Sonowal not to interfere in the process," he alleged. "How can we say the final NRC is error-free if so many Indians, including Hindus, don't find their names on the final list just because they were unable to furnish some documents?"

Dass claimed BJP had information about people declared as foreigners getting back into the draft NRC. "More than Rs 1,200 crore has been spent on updating the NRC. If a single genuine citizen is left out, it will be a travesty," he said. He pointed out that many serving and retired security personnel, besides family members of freedom fighters and those of martyrs of the anti-foreigner movement had been excluded from the draft NRC.

Earlier this month, state parliamentary affairs minister Chandra Mohan Patowary had placed NRC exclusion data in the assembly to highlight the government's concerns about genuine citizens being left out. He said the percentage of exclusion in South Salmara (7.22%), Dhubri (8.26%) and Karimganj (7.67%) - all bordering Bangladesh and with a large population of minorities - as being much lower than the state average of 12.15%.

Asked why the government did not act earlier if it knew that people of doubtful origin had been included in the draft NRC, Dass said that 50,000 state government employees had been engaged for the updation exercise. "However, in its July 2017 order, the SC asked the Assam government not to interfere with the NRC process. It said the NRC coordinator would be responsible for the entire exercise."

Assam PCC president Ripun Bora said his party would ensure injustice wasn't done to genuine Indian citizens. Congress will provide free legal aid to those with bona fide claims to the NRC, he said.

(With Agency inputs)

